The Space Emperor's Siege
by CiscoTheSoto
Summary: Saitama, a seemingly invulnerable hero, faces a self imposed existential crisis. Still unable to find a worthy opponent, his spirits continue to remain at an all time low. Unbeknownst to him, the Space Emperor Lord Frieza gets wind of Lord Boros' demise, and takes swift action to remedy the situation. So Saitama might just get exactly what he's looking for, and a little bit more...
1. Just One Punch

Hey, the rewritten Chapter 1 is up! _I made a mistake: I accidentally uploaded Chapter 2 in place of Chapter 1, and the original Chapter 1 isn't on my fanfiction doc manager. And to make it more annoying, the original word document is on my computer whose software is absent with a flashing folder, and I don't know how to fix it, so I had to rewrite the chapter. Anyway, sorry it took so long, but now it's fixed, so here it is! The first chapter of the Space Emperor's Besiege!_

* * *

The ground quaked in wake of the massive threat rampaging through Y-City. A huge chunk of the city was wiped off the map, reduced to nothing, and it was all thanks to Pluton, King of the Underworld. The monster was colossal in size; he had red eyes and tubes running from the side of his nose and neck to his shoulders. His skin was dark with grey and red sewn patches. He wore red pants and a shirt with green, yellow, brown and grey patches sewn together over his rib cage, with his shoulder decorated with skulls. had risen up from the Earth to exterminate humanity and all those who would dare oppose him.

"You superfluous humans waste your existence in decadence and gluttony," Pluton's voice was deep and thunderous, spreading all across Y-City, "Littering the world with pointless objects."

As Pluton walked across the city, he came closer a little boy bawling in terror and despondence, hiding behind a ruined building. "Now you shall all go to the underworld that spreads beneath my very staff!"

However, just before Pluton planted his feet into the ground to crush the child, an unknown being rocketed in with lightning-fast speed, saving the boy from his demise. The pig-like king looked down to see who had arrived, and saw that a cybernetic being was holding the boy in his arms. "Who do we have here?"

The cyborg did not look to meet the monsters eyes. "Who, you ask? A hero who is a great man for fun, and a prophet."

Pluton was taken aback by this. "A great man?" The King of the Underworld barely had enough time to turn his head up to see death hurtling right toward him. With a single punch, a bald man with a yellow jumpsuit and white cape completely obliterated the monster's head. Gallons upon gallons of blood cascaded down like a gigantic waterfall, along with giant chunks of organs and brain matter. The cyborg, Genos, smiled in delight. "And his disciple."

The bald hero, Saitama, however, was not so pleased. He looked at his hand, which was slightly steaming from the friction of his punch, in disbelief and disappointment. "Not again. I'm back to one punch..." Saitama dropped to his knees, feeling the anger and grief bubbling up inside of him. He then released all of these chruning emotions with a booming shout.

"DAMN IT!"

The teenage cyborg heard his master's shout of distress and immediately ran to his side. "Master, are you alright?" said Genos, inspecting to see if he had inquired any sort of injury, "What is the problem?"

"This guy went down in one punch!" said Saitama, "I thought that with the space leader, things might change and I'd get a little more excitement, but this fat piggy couldn't even take a hit! It freaking sucks!"

Running from the side, the child who was saved by Genos eagerly and passionately came to the heroes' sides and ran into Genos' legs and embraced them as tightly as he could. Saitama's angry expression disappeared and changed into a neutral demeanor, and Genos' eyes nominally widened. "You saved me! You're amazing."

Genos gently patted the child on the back. Saitama looked at this display of gratitude and happiness and let out a sigh of disappointment and lifted his chin up to meet him eye-to-eye. The cyborg shook his head, confusing the child."Don't thank me," said Genos, "Thank my master." Genos motioned his hand toward Saitama, "He is the one who defeated the monster. He is the truly amazing one."

"Nah, forget it." Saitama waved his hand in dismissal. "I'm fine. Come on, Genos. We gotta head back to Z-city for the bargain sale."

"Very well, master." Genos gently released himself from the grip the child had on him. "I'm sorry," said Genos, "But we must leave. Just stay here; the Hero Association members will arrive shortly to assist you and help you find your family."

"Okay..." Genos and Saitama bent their knees, and skyrocketed up into the air, creating minor tremors in the ground and leaving behind an astonished boy.

* * *

"Well, we made it." After searching the location of the bargain sale online and using the address listed in the flyer Saitama possessed, Saitama and Genos had finally found the farmers market they had been looking for. The store was rather small, although there were dozens of people shopping inside. Saitama gritted his teeth; they must have come here for the bargain sale too! "There's no way we're going to leave here without those discount products!"

"According to the flyer, there is a 40% discount on edamame, and a 35% discount on the Myoga. Would you like to start there."

Saitama nodded his head in confirmation. "Yep, sounds good." Both heroes rushed into the store, and immediately went searching in the aisle with the vegetables they were seeking. The vegetables were kept ventilated by a cooling system, and were not boxed or packaged in any sort of way, allowing for the customers to hand-pick them as they so pleased.

As both heroes were examining the products, a few of the other customers turned their heads to face them. Whispers spread among them like wildfire. Genos and Saitama took note of these growing whispers, perplexed as to what the cause was.

"Um, excuse me." A male customer with black hair, green eyes, and a black jacket spoke to Saitama and Genos. "Are you a hero from the Hero Association?"

Saitama's lips curved up; he straightened his posture put his hands to his hips as if he was modeling a typical superhero pose. "You've got a good eye there."

Gasps came out of the customer's mouths. A hero standing right in front of them? It was amazing! The customers crowded around Saitama and Genos. Saitama let out a confident laugh, but the laugh became a mere whimper when he realized the horrible truth: the customers were all gathering around Genos. The crowd stormed around Genos, asking him all sorts of questions, commenting on his awesomeness, asking for autographs.

"What were the Space Pirates like?"

"You should be S-class Rank 1!"

"I love you!"

While most heroes would revel in the adoration and popularity, Genos did not think highly of this commentary; no, for him, the only people whose opinions truly mattered to him were Saitama and the good doctor. This was why Genos merely turned around and resumed his shopping as if nobody was behind him.

An anime-style sweat drop fell down Saitama's face, and an imaginary storm cloud appeared above Saitama, drenching him with the depressing rain that only served to worsen his despondent and emotionless self.

"Of course..."

* * *

The moonlight shined brightly in the streets of City Z. At the bald hero's apartment, he was laying down on the floor with his sleeping bag scrunched under his back as he silently staring up at the ceiling. Once Genos was swarmed with his fans, Saitama decided to leave him be and finish his shopping by himself. Genos eventually reunited with him and the two left the market with some edamame, myoga, and a few other products that had caught their eye. His disciple was currently fast asleep on the floor, while he was still digesting all of today's events.

The incident at the market reminded him of the little respect and appreciation Saitama was given as a hero. Now, it wasn't like Saitama was a hero for the fame or money, but just a little appreciation or admiration from the public wouldn't hurt him. It was like the whole world was against him, and he didn't know why. Was it because he was bald? He wasn't proud of it! Saitama let out a sigh; despite the annoyance of the lack of appreciation, that paled in comparison to his self-existential crisis. That feeling of depression and lifelessness that had begun ever since he started his training was only growing within him. The desire to face a worthy opponent was more present than ever. How come there weren't any other monsters like Boros? At least he could take a punch! Why couldn't there be someone out there in the universe who could give him the challenge he needed? Where were they?

"I guess I can only dream..."

* * *

Out in the deep, obsidian-black breaches of the cosmos, a large, circular-shaped ship was flying through space. Inside of this ship, a being of extraordinary power was quietly at the helm of his ship, sitting in his hover chair and taking in the vast emptiness of space. Standing at his sides were his two top henchmen, Zarbon and Dodoria, while their master indulged himself in his wine tasting.

The Emperor of the Universe, Lord Frieza, was feeling rather jovial at the moment. The past few years were years of unparalleled growth and progress for him; he had acquired over 100 planets, which only served to both boost his wealth and increase the number of soldiers in his army. One of the only threats that ever posed a danger to him was taken care of 25 years ago when he destroyed Planet Vegeta and almost the entire saiyan race. He had to admit, the legend managed to make him a little nervous, but he had easily taken care of the situation; he also made sure only two saiyans remained: Vegeta, the Prince of Saiyans, and Nappa, the General of the Saiyan army. Things were looking better than ever, and nothing would ever change that...

"Lord Frieza!"

Zarbon and Dodoria turned around to see a foot soldier standing in attention, out of breath and appearing distressed.

"What is the meaning of this? You know better than to interrupt Lord Frieza in the middle of his wine tasting!"

The foot soldier dropped his knee to the ground and bowed his head down in respect. "My deepest apologies, your lordship, but I have urgent news."

"I see..." Frieza put his glass of wine down and turned his hover chair around until he was but a foot away from the soldier. "Very well then. What news do you have."

"Our scouts have confirmed that... Lord Boros is dead."

"What?!" Frieza's calm demeanor shifted into malevolent anger, eliciting a jump of terror from the foot soldier and widened eyes from Zarbon and Dodoria.

"How is this possible? How did he die?" The foot soldier found it difficult to regain his voice, as his entire body was shaking from terror, and his heart was threatening to jump up his throat. "We-e-e f-f-found out that an unknown warrior defeated him in battle on a planet somewhere in the Southern part of the galaxy."

Frieza snarled at the memory of that pathetic excuse for a dominator. A few decades ago, Boros had been a major thorn in his empire, constantly raiding supplies from several of his planets, killing off his soldiers, destroying some of his military bases. At first, Frieza thought little of it and merely put a bounty on his head; Raditz, one of the only remaining saiyans, had tried to capture him singlehandedly like a complete fool, and he was utterly decimated by one of his henchmen, Melzargard. Frieza thought little of the loss, since Raditz was an extremely weak excuse for a saiyan. But the line was drawn when Boros stole a huge shipment of Katchin, the most known durable substance in the universe and one of the rarest as well. It was at that point that Frieza knew he had to take matters into his own hands.

So, he met Boros face-to-face on one of the moons of Frieza Planet 419, and the two of them engaged in a duel. Frieza had to admit, he was a rather powerful foe; he had to enter his final form in order to defeat him, although in the end, Boros was put on his knees. But just before Frieza had the chance to land the finishing blow, one of his henchmen used his psychic abilities and temporarily restrained him, allowing for Boros to escape. Boros had never been seen since, and he became a mere memory of the past. But if someone had the power to defeat Boros, then his power was truly something to behold.

"My lord?" Frieza's train of thought was interrupted by Zarbon. "What are you thinking of?"

"I'm simply pondering over the optimal course of action. I believe the smartest decision would to first send some more able-bodied scouts to the planet to do a proper inspection. Who knows? There might be some very valuable resources or powerful warriors that have eluded my grasp until now. Either way, I see no disadvantage. Zarbon."

Zarbon immediately stood in attention. "Yes, my lord!"

"Inform Vegeta and Nappa that they will be sent on this mission to..." Frieza looked at the soldier. "What was this planet called again?"

"The indigenous people call it Earth."

"Inform them they will be sent to Earth on a track and report mission."

"Understood!" Zarbon immediately sprinted out of the door, making haste in following his master's command. Frieza rotated his hover chair back towards the cosmos, a small smile splitting across his face.

"This will be... very interesting."

* * *

 _Chapter 1 is rewritten and up! Anyway, onto chapter 2!_


	2. Arrival

_So here's Chapter 2! I'm sorry it took so long. I'd like to thank all the reviewers. Issac2000 in particular. When I read your review you made me chuckle for the first time in a very crappy day. So thanks for that. Also, don't forget to check out my one shot, Pig God's Usurp. Reviews for this story would be very helpful, so please don't be shy to critique my work. Oh, and um I made a mistake: I accidentally uploaded Chapter 2 in place of Chapter 1, and the original Chapter 1 isn't on my fanfiction doc manager. And to make it more annoying, the original word document is on my computer whose software is absent with a flashing folder, and I don't know how to fix it. So until I rewrite chapter 1 or find a way to fix my computer, Chapter 1 will be absent for the time being. Whether for a few days, which it will probably be, or at worst a week or two, just now why you see either two chapter 2's or no explanation for certain things stated in chapter 2. Anyway, here's chapter 2!_

* * *

The cool air vented through the antique air conditioner, just barely giving the Caped Baldy enough insulation to cool his body. His alarm clock blared exponentially at the moment the hour hand hit 7. Like all the predecessors before this clock, it was utterly destroyed by Saitama's fist.

Saitama grudgingly opened his eyes, upset that his stupid alarm clock was halting his beauty sleep, but knowing he'd sleep another 4 hours if it wasn't there.. Rubbing his head and scratching his ass, he lazily rose from his bed. Yawning with fatigue as his crusty hands rubbed at his eyes, his senses were heightened at the aroma of freshly brewing eggs in his kitchen. "I could sure use some scrambled eggs." As if his prayers were answered, he saw Genos working at the oven, his right hand replaced with a wisk and his left hand adjusting the temperature of his oven.

"Those eggs are looking good, Genos." The disciple's cooking was interrupted at his master's voice. Genos performed a 90-degree turn, bowing his head in respect to his master. "Yes Master! I have prepared them with tomato slices and paprika, just how you like it done!" Saitama beamed, a rare expression he lost in exchange for his power. For Saitama, although Geno's pestering got on his nerves every now and then, his cooking was phenomenal, and his utilitarian tools he attached to his body to clean around the apartment were actually really helpful for tidying up his tiny abode.

"Cool. So are they done yet?" Genos quickly nodded in confirmation. With the speed of sound, the young cyborg prepared the table, catching even Saitama off with the unexpected increase of speed. "Wow Genos. If you used that kind of speed in battle, you'd make it to rank 5 in no time." Genos' face slightly flushed at this praise from his master. "Thank you master." Wasting no time, Saitama plopped himself dead center of his chair as he voraciously looked at his meal. "Let's dig in then!"

Eagerly complying, the two heroes feasted themselves on the delicious feast before them.

However, just as Saitama dug his fork into a heap of scrambled eggs and was about to put it in his mouth, a strange sensation shot through his brain. His bland expression turned into that of a serious tone, as his brows slightly scrunched in confusion. What was this feeling coming over him? He couldn't put his finger on it, but he swore it was as if his body was telling him something was coming. Something powerful. But as soon as it came, it left, leaving behind a dumbfounded hero.

"Master, is something wrong?" His disciple's concerned question brought him back from this sensational conundrum. "Oh, it's nothing. Just felt a chill coming up my spine that's all." He shrugged at his odd feeling, the two heroes continued to eat as if nothing had happened.

* * *

Coldness and the empty void of darkness flew by the two space pods. Inside the two pods were the Prince of Saiyans and his sole remaining general. Both of them were resting lounged in silence, attempting to get some beauty sleep before they arrived at their destination. Both of them were contemplating the news they had received from Zarbon, wondering exactly what they were dealing with.

* * *

" _How pathetically weak, Nappa."_

 _The Saiyan Elite lay face down in the training chamber; his clothes tattered beyond repair, his tail bruised and lying weakly beside Nappa. His teeth grinded in frustration at the humiliation of defeat once again by Prince Vegeta. Damn it. His combat experience far exceeded that of the Prince, and the age distance between the two was a good 30 years at least. But no matter how much he hated to admit it, Prince Vegeta's strength was absolutely astonishing._

" _Prince Vegeta, can you give me a hand?" Nappa hesitantly reached his right arm for Vegeta's support. Vegeta, standing cross-armed with a scowl on his face, extended his right arm and grabbed hold of Nappa's hand. "Thank you." Nappa realized his mistake when he noticed Vegeta's scowl shift to a smirk. "Wrong choice, Nappa."_

 _Vegeta began to spin Nappa around and around like a children's toy. Nappa's eyes widened at the feeling his limp body being swung around like a monkey's plaything. Prince Vegeta finished his courtesy call by slamming Nappa as hard as he could into the steel wall. The Saiyan General coughed up blood. The smell of his blood and the taste of defeat in his mouth only heightened his shame at losing to Vegeta once again; he knew that this was the worst beating he'd ever experienced at the Prince's hands so far. But the most gut-wrenching factor that made his face contort in disgust was that the Prince hadn't even broken a sweat._

 _Even at the age of 5, he surpassed the normal limitations of saiyan children, being able to effortlessly blow away 5 saibamen with a single attack. Even so, any frustration he harbored toward Prince Vegeta was simply an inept feeling of self-worthlessness on his own part. Nappa was a saiyan general, one of the pride symbols of the elite class. His power made other saiyans cower in terror at the sheer might his aura radiated to those around him. He was one of the only few remaining survivors of the Saiyan Tuffle war, the war that nearly decimated the population of the saiyan race. It was only through the power of the blutz waves emitted from the full moon that allowed them the swift victory. He, along with King Vegeta and the 4 other saiyan generals, had stood triumphantly at the castle of the Tuffle King._

 _He smiled at the memory of King Vegeta. Before the Saiyan Empire was annexed by Frieza, the saiyans focused on strong fraternal connections with not only their families, but their comrades as well, and there was nobody who he felt more bonded with than King Vegeta. The two of them had endured the worst of war, swimming through the oceans of blood pouring out of their enemies, and even enjoying themselves as they both got drunk on whatever alcohol remained on the invading planet. Although King Vegeta would rip his tongue out if he ever admitted this in public, the two were actually the closest friends two saiyans could be._

 _The king strived to maintain balance and order, but knew he had to present himself as a ruthless tyrant to keep this delicate system of government in line and to make sure every saiyan knew that he was the alpha dog. Even so, he still acted with a rather balanced sense of judgment. But on the inside, he was an extremely sensible, honorable warrior, and the few people who had the chance to see his more personal emotions would have realized he was a good man. That was until the day Frieza had taken control of the Saiyan Empire._

 _Nappa inwardly grimaced at the memory. The King bowing in submission, Frieza planting his foot directly on King Vegeta's head, and being forced to kneel before him and enlist themselves as members of the Frieza Force. Ever since that day, King Vegeta was never the same. His inward charisma began to wane, with the malevolent and pure evil of Frieza seeping into his heart. The smooth relationship he had with the king was like a lost memory of time, and even Nappa had changed. Frieza began to implement the four most important rules of the Frieza Force: The mission always comes first, kill anyone who gets in the way, taking executive power into your own hands will get you a fist through your chest, and most importantly, save your own hide._

 _Nonetheless, he took it as a great honor when he was given the privilege of training the newly acquainted Prince Vegeta. While the other generals snickered at Nappa's demotion to a babysitter, he knew that he was given a great honor with this, and knew at that moment that even after everything the King had gone through, he still viewed Nappa as somewhat of a friend. So in return, he trained Vegeta with everything he knew. He gave him sparring lessons, taught him how to use his ki, and even told Vegeta a few stories about his time with King Vegeta._

 _However, the prince thusly refused his companionship. His time in solitary missions and Frieza's influence on him corrupted him just like it had Nappa and the King, turning him into a more sinister, uncaring weapon of war, aimed for nothing but combat. And while Nappa proudly admitted he enjoyed the scent of blood that drenched his armor and the way his enemies screamed as he met their demise, he still had a form of respect for his fellow generals and King, and Frieza took whatever form of that was left in any saiyan and crushed it in the palm of his hand._

 _But the death of King Vegeta and his race had shaken the core of his brain. When he heard the news that a giant meteor destroyed Planet Vegeta, his breath was cut short and his heart had almost stopped at the realization that he, Vegeta, and Raditz were the last remnants of the proud Saiyan Empire that toppled over any planet that stood in their way. He hadn't even gotten to say farewell to the King. But weakness was what got you killed in the Frieza Force, so he put on the façade that he couldn't care less about the destruction of Planet Vegeta. Someday, he would find a way to avenge his saiyan brethren and his king._

 _Vegeta confidently stride to the saiyan general, crossing his arms with his signature pose of condescension. "So Nappa, did the trauma from your defeat give you brain damage, or you just that stupid?" Gradually setting his gaze to his prince, his vein throbbed in anger at the condescending look dancing in Vegeta's eyes. Refusing to let his pride be shot even further, a comeback response formed at the tip of his tongue, but shortly dissasparated at the sound of the door opening, revealing a panting Zarbon._

" _Oh look what the cat dragged from the alleyway", teased Vegeta._

" _Cute. But Frieza's sending you on an urgent mission." Vegeta and Nappa exchanged narrowed eyed looks at each other. Never had either of them had ever heard Frieza use the word "urgent" in one of his missions. You're going to Planet 590, one of the few planets in the Northern Quadrant of the Galaxy that's been lucky enough to avoid Frieza's attention."_

" _Why would Frieza send us to a random planet on such short notice," questioned Vegeta, his curiosity slightly peaked. Zarbon's lips twisted in a hint of disbelief. "Lord Boros was killed by one of the planet's inhabitants."_

" _WHAT!?" replyed both slack-jawed saiyans. "Lord Boros?! Leader of the Dark Matter space pirates?!"_

 _Zarbon bitterly nodded. Neither saiyan cold believe it. Ever since his rise, Lord Boros had been one of the most powerful enemies of the Frieza Force. The bounty on his head was more than than 15 years of yearly income of regular foot soldiers. Raditz's life had been lost to his henchmen, and while any fighter would see that Raditz was a disgrace of a saiyan warrior, it was still no small task to defeat a saiyan, with apparent ease no less._

" _Did the scouts pick up on who killed him?" pestered Vegeta._

" _No. Your mission is simple: Find the highest power level on the planet, defeat him and prepare for Frieza's arrival. You'll be monitored throughout the entire operation, just to make sure neither of you monkey's pulls a fast one."_

 _Both saiyan's sneered. "You're too kind."_

" _Your pods will be ready in 30 minutes, just so you can have some time to clean up. Nappa, you're a mess. Clean your shit up." Nappa shot Zarbon a look of hatred, but knew that he could do nothing to him in his current state, so he turned away in defiance._

" _Hmmph. Arrogant apes." Those were his last words before he left, swishing his cape as he did so._

" _Zarbon was right. Clean yourself up." Nappa scoffed, dragging his broken body to the saiyan's private healing chamber. Vegeta spectated the pitiful display in disgust. "What a weakling."_

* * *

"How much time until our arrival, Vegeta?"

"About 10 minutes."

Nappa flexed his muscles inside the space pod, noting the increased strength he felt flowing through his entire body. "You know Prince, I actually have to thank you for that horrendous beating."

"Really? Why?"

"Since you decided not to hold back, I got a HUGE big power boost from the royal beating. I think I might be almost twice as strong as I was before."

Vegeta snickered. "Well congratulations Nappa. Guess that mean's I'll have to pound your face into the ground almost twice as hard as I did before."

"We'll see..."

Both saiyans remained quiet. But after a few minutes, Nappa asked the question both of them were pondering. "Hey Vegeta, how powerful do you think this warrior is?"

Vegeta scoffed. "Even if he defeated Boros, he's still nothing compared to the Prince of all Saiyans!"

Despite Vegeta's bluff, both saiyans had thoughts racing through their minds. If there was a warrior who had he power to defeat Lord Boros, they could only imagine what he was doing right now, what kind of immensely difficult training he was doing…

* * *

"Hey Genos, which do you think will last longer, the white meat of the dark meat?"

"According to internet sources, white meat is usually said to have a longer expiration date."

"Nice." The Caped Baldy and Demon Cyborg were inspecting through the local market, drifting through their daily purchases with a tedious attitude. Thursday sales almost always had the cheapest prices, but their selection wasn't diverse,leaving Saitama with either choosing crappy meals or expensive seafood. Unable to afford the luxury of seafood, Saitama grudgingly put the light meat in his shopping bag.

"Alright, maybe we should…" Without warning, the same sensation shot through his spine, as if all his instincts were screaming at him, sending out danger signals. This didn't make any sense. He now realized that he had experienced this feeling to a smaller extent while fighting Boros.

"Master?"

"Genos, we need to check the news."

"What is the matter…"

"Now!"

Before Genos could even respond, Saitama sprinted for home, leaving nothing but a trail of smoke behind him.

* * *

The people of City C were crowding around the center of the city. All of the citizens were enjoying themselves, working as if it were a regular day; well, as regular as a city could get with all the mysterious beings. But suddenly, two flaming pod shaped ships came barreling through the stratosphere at an insurmountable speeds, and just as they were about to enter the troposphere, the ships unexpectedly lost speed. By the time they reached City C, they only created rather small holes in the ground that spanned about a few meters wide. "What's going on?"

"Do you think they're from the Hero Association?"

"Could it be one of Metal Knight's probes?" The citizens murmered their possibilities of this odd conundrum.

The pod's front's flew open, revealing two mysterious warriors with odd clothing. The larger man smelled of blood and anger, and the shorter warrior radiated a sense of power that was hard to miss.

"Nappa, what's the highest power level in this vicinity?"

Nappa clicked his scouter on, scanning the entire city. "I got 10 as the highest power level."

"Hey are you guys members of the Hero Association?"

"Sure. Nappa, you know what to do."

Nappa twisted his lips. "It's been a while since I've dusted off this move." Nappa raised his finger, and the citizens didn't even have the time to realize their lives were coming to a bitter end. In a blinding flash, the entire city was evaporated within the blink of an eye.


	3. A-Class Failures

Nothing remained in the former City C. Dust clouds stormed about, eerie silence plaguing everything around it. Every single person had been vaporized; not a single block of concrete remained in this now desolate desert-land.

The two saiyan warriors watched this with an indifferent attitude. "Don't you think you overdid it a little Nappa?"

"I bet that's what Frieza said last night after Zarbon finished sucking his dick." Vegeta chuckled in amusement. "Surprisingly quick."

"So do you think the "strongest" fighter on this planet will come?"

Vegeta surveyed the landscape, scoping out any possible energy levels or fighters approaching, but to his disappointment, nothing was approaching. "I have a hunch that if we cause enough damage, the government of this planet will take action, and if we're lucky enough, this warrior will show himself."

"Smart thinking there, Prince. So, where should we go?"

"If these inhabitants are as dim witted as they appear to be, they'll take much greater notice if we continue our attack toward another highly populated area." Activating his scouter, Vegeta rotated his head to the left. He maliciously grinned when he discovered several thousand power levels gathered in one place. "Well Nappa, lets terminate an infestation."

The saiyan general twisted his lips. "Happily."

* * *

The Caped Baldy crashed through his door, frantically searching for his TV remote.

"Master, what is it that you're sensing?" Too absorbed in his search, Saitama didn't hear a word his disciple said. Saitama sighed in relief when he saw his remote hidden under his blanket on the floor, punching his fist in the air.

"Master?"

Like before, Saitama's attention was too focused on flipping through channels to notice Genos speaking.

"Master!" Saitama looked at his disciple with a blank face.

"Huh?"

"What exactly can you sense?"

Saitama met his disciple's gaze. Geno's eyes widened at the seriousness in his master's face, causing the wires in his muscles tighten reflexively in anxiety.

"It's hard to explain, but ever since I fought Boros, I've felt like I've gained an extra sense…" Geno's face clearly showed he still didn't understand. "I don't know how to say it, but…" Saitama pinched the bridge of his nose in frustration, trying to find the best way to explain this anomaly. "It's like…. It's like I can sense the presence of beings, or at least powerful presences. I've never felt anything like this before. Even though my fight with Boros wasn't hard, I still had to use more power than I usually would against enemies, and it's as if something in me was… awakened. Do you get me?"

Genos placed his fingers on his chin in deep thought. Master Saitama's perspective of this odd ability was without a doubt an unusual ability. "Interesting... So you say you can sense the presence of other beings?"

"Uhhh. Kinda?"

"From what you've said, it appears that you've somehow managed to trace the energy levels of beings without the use of any hardware or technology." Saitama tilted his head in confusion. "Huh. So you think that…"

"We interrupt this program with breaking news!" A broadcaster's voice blared form the television speakers, interrupting the heroes' heated conversation.

"We've just received word that City C has been completely wiped off the face of the earth!" The two heroes gasped. The city was wiped off the planet? The duo looked at each other with nervous glares. Could Master Saitama have predicted this with this new ability? "No mysterious beings were spotted in the area, so it is implied that whatever mysterious being committed this atrocity has either left the scene or is rather small in size. The Hero Association has classified whatever beings caused this as dragon level threat, and citizens in the neighboring cities of City A, B, D, and E are to evacuate immediately. Wait, what's this?"

"It appears that the Hero Association has determined the location of these mysterious beings, and they have already sent in Stinger, Lightning Max, and Death Gatling to combat the creature. The Hero Association has requested the assistance of any S class heroes who are nearby to assist in the situation."

Saitama's dull face changed to a much more serious demeanor. "Those heroes aren't going to survive." It wasn't like he was attached or anything to those heroes, but he was just stating the obvious based on what he was sensing.

Genos' eyes widened. "Are you sure of this Master?"

"What I felt was something on a completely different level of any A class heroes. We have to go." Genos nodded in confirmation, but something bothered him about this. Through the few months he had spent with Master, he was rarely if not ever this serious about a threat. If Master Saitama felt this grave about a mysterious being, then it was entirely possible this being had the capabilities of nationwide, even global destruction.

"Then we must leave immediately!"

"Yea!"

Genos lifted his hand, preparing to incinerate the wall, when Saitama stood in front of him to block his path. "WHAT ARE YOU DOING!?"

"I just believed that exiting through the wall would prove to be faster…" Genos stammered at his last word when he noticed the rather distressed and frustrated look on master's face.

"I had to pay 5 grand for my ceiling! I had to use 90% of your rent money to pay the bill! So can you please just not do that?

Genos bowed in shame. "I am so sorry master! I will never do so again!"

"Good." The Caped Baldy took a deep breath in, then exhaled, releasing all of the anger he just built up, his bland look returning as usual. Saitama gestured Genos to the door, and the two sprinted out through the hallway. Saitama giddily grinned as he closed the door. If this guy was as powerful as he sensed them to be, then maybe, just maybe he could get feel the rush of battle just one more time, and this empty hole in his hart could be filled.

* * *

"Prince Vegeta, we have about 50 miles until we reach the city."

Both saiyans swiftly flew through the nimbus clouds, bored out of their minds with their patience reaching a close end. "Good."

"This planet is so boring! I can't believe somebody could have defeated Boros when they live in a planet with such light gravity!" whined Nappa.

Suddenly, Vegeta's scouter began beeping out of nowhere, with Nappa's scouter following suit. "Well well well. It looks like we have some lowlifes who want to interrupt our hunt."

"Do you think we should bother?" questioned Nappa.

"Lets humor them, then show them an exit to their pitiful existence with a one way ticket to hell!" replied Vegeta.

Both saiyans erupted in a short chorus of laughter. If there was one thing both of them could happily agree on, it was when they taunted their kill.

"So where should we set up our shop?"

Vegeta scouted the area, preferably a rocky for entertainment purposes. He pointed to flat grassland littered with tall rock formations. Both saiyans grinned and quickly flew over to the soon-to-be arena.

As the two saiyans touched down, they looked around to see if there were any signs of life heading toward them, but so far, the place was devoid of life. "So, do you think they'll show up?"

"If they won't, then we'll have to entertain ourselves by destroying the next cities over…"

"You two! Stop right there!"

The two saiyans looked over their shoulders to see three oddly dressed humanoids staring at them with hateful eyes. "And just who the hell are you two supposed to be?"

Stinger stepped in front of the other two A class heroes, his chin held up high and his chest pumped up with confidence. "I'm Stinger, an A class hero rank 10, but for you, I'm your death." Vegeta laughed at this human's egotistic demeanor. "Oh really? I can't imagine a warrior with a power level of…" Vegeta focused his scouter on Stinger, and let loose a gasp of slight shock. "Wow, you have a power level of 1000. I guess that mean's your not completely worthless."

"What was that?!"

"Your friend to the right, the blonde one with the idiotic hairdo, has a power of 1,100, and the one to your left has a power level of 900. If you're lucky, you might cut a snippet of my hair off, but that would only be if I'm having an off day, which I'm not."

Lightning Max snarled at the two saiyans. "Oh yea?! And just who are you two supposed to be?!"

Vegeta took a few steps forward, then crossed his arms as he gave a look of malevolence. "I am Prince Vegeta, Rightful ruler of the proud Saiyan race! Civilizations tremble at my wake, and the sturdiest of warriors will bow at my feet! Those who would dare defy me will be annihilated!"

"Oh yea?! Then lets see how you fare against this! Lightning Kick!" Lightning Max swung his right leg, hitting Vegeta square in his neck. A blast of yellow light and gunpowder shook the area, momentarily blinding the fighters around them. Death Gatling and Stinger shielded their eyes from the blast. When the smoke cleared, Stinger and Death Gatling frantically looked around for Lightning Max. Both sighed in relief when they saw Lightning Max standing victorious, his fist raised high in the air. Lightning Max sighed inwardly in relief. He'd had a consecutive series of opprobrious defeats at the hands of several mysterious beings, and he'd begin doubting whether his abilities were still worthy of A-class. Looks like he still had some fighting skill left in him.

"Not bad, Lightning Max."

"Nice job man." Both heroes gave their compliments to the fellow A-class hero.

Lightning Max looked over to Nappa. "Look's like the prince of Saiyan's isn't so mighty now…"

"How weak… Using toys to finish your work." All three heroes gasped in horror. The mysterious being was still standing, smirking in delight with his arms crossed, as if he hadn't even been hit at all.

"Damn it… Not again…" The two heroes gasped again when they saw Lightning Max drop to the ground, clasping his hands over his head with utter fear. Why couldn't he finish the job? Were his abilities truly that inadequate in the face of these mysterious beings? Tears threatened to fall form his eyes, but his instincts told him to hold them in, so his instincts and emotions were batting each other, trying to win over one another, both the pain stemming from his gut and the swirling feelings of frustration close to bubbling to the surface.

"Nappa, these "heroes" aren't worth the trouble. Look at the pitiful way they grovel on the ground in the face of a stronger enemy. Lets have some fun with them and plant the Saibamen."

This was unexpected. Usually, saibamen were to be used for training exercises or for military operations, and Nappa had killed several hundred during his training to become a genera. "That'll definitely bring some fun to this game."

The saiyan general quickly took out a capsule from his lower armor pocket. The capsule was divided into halves; on the top half were 6 green spherical balls and on the bottom half was a purple liquid The two heroes gave each other confused looks.

"Is that it? What are 6 little balls and purple goo going to do?" Death Gatling placed his hand on Stinger, his face dead serious. "Stinger, get ready to fight. I have a feeling that whatever those balls are won't be good."

"Are you sure?"

Death Gatling intently stared at Nappa. "If I was a betting man, I would guess those balls are those Saibamen they were talking about.

"Lightning Max, get a hold of yourself and get ready to fight." Lightning Max's emotions were too raw for him to snap himself out of it. The pain coupled with the shock of his early defeat made him into an emotionless corpse. "MAX! DO IT NOW!" Stinger's yelling finally caught his attention, and he looked at his A-class comrades. Realizing the looks on their faces were serious, the fallen hero slapped himself in the face. "Sorry about that." He took a deep breath to compose himself, then quickly rejoined the other two A class heroes, assuming a fighting stance as he did so.

Vegeta enigmatically smiled. "A smart observation. Looks like you're not as stupid as you look. Yes, you're correct. Those green balls as you call them are much more than they appear."

"Now you boys sit back and watch the freak show unfold." The three heroes were quivering in fear as they saw 6 green blobs creeping out the ground. Each one of them were paralyzed with fear, unable to stop the Saibamen from harvesting themselves. Their skin was sickly green, with blood red eyes gleaming evilly at the heroes. Veins popped out of their lime green skulls, and with their pointed ears, each of them looked like a demented elf, twisted and molded into abominations of nature. But the thing that was most frightening was their sinister, tormenting laughs. The three heroes stepped back, the mere cackling of these monstrosities sending shivers up their spines.

Death Gatling was the first to recover from the mind numbing shock. "What the hell are those things?"

Vegeta twisted his lips into a crooked smile, more than pleased to see the look of pure terror amidst their faces. "Those are saibamen. Each of them are a match for your pathetic power levels, and judging by the looks on your faces, they won't have to use more than half of their power."

"Alright, saibamen!" The saibamen turned to face Nappa, each of them eagerly waiting for a command. "You're job is to fight each of these jokes 1 on 1. You can battle them in whatever way you want, but you aren't allowed to hold back, and no matter what, you MUST finish the job! And if you choose to neglect my orders…" Vegeta raised his hand to the sky and shot a blue ki blast from the palm of his hand. Within seconds, the ki blast exploded, sending a shockwave powerful enough to rip away the roots of all the trees nearby and completely evaporate the leaves, with nothing left but piles of ash.

"So do you get the picture?" The Saibamen immediately bowed and nodded in confirmation. The three A class heroes couldn't believe what they had seen. This mysterious being had completely obliterated everything for miles around, with nothing but half dead, burning trees, and it looked like he hadn't even broken a sweat. At that moment, the situation they were in truly sank in: whoever these two fighters were, they were completely out of their league. The only thing they could do is buy enough time for the S class heroes to arrive and pray that the S class heroes would stand a chance. Well, at least these Saibamen didn't look as intimidating. Sure, they looked like mutant baby monsters, but besides that, nothing particularly powerful emanated from them, or so they thought…

Lightning Max clenched his fist in anger. "So is that what you guys think? If that's how confident you are, I'll kick all of your midget asses back into the ground."

The saibamen cackled at this human's cockiness. "Alright, so which of you 6 wants to go first?" asked Nappa. Each Saibamen began bickering with each other, playing rock paper scissors, picking between 1 and 3, none of them realizing the sole saibamen who walked up to declared himself as the human's challenger.

"It looks like a decision's been made." Vegeta scoffed, seating himself on a nearby rock to watch the spectacle. "Ok then, start pounding the fresh meat."

"I'D LIKE TO SEE YOU TRY!" Lightning Max lunged full force at the Saibaman, the sole of his sneaker aimed straight for the Saibaman's forehead. "DIE!" But to Lightning Max's surprise, the Saibaman was gone. Lightning Max hectically searched around for the Saibaman, desperately wondering how the little devil had eluded him so quickly. Lightning Max didn't even have the time to register the Saibaman's fist planting itself in his stomach, tearing the layer of fat and muscles with it's sheer force.

"AH!" Lightning Max collapsed on the ground, clutching his gut as he groaned in agony. This was just history repeating itself. Brought down and tossed aside like garbage, just like with the Sea King. Lightning Max's eyes couldn't even trace the midget's movements, and he felt like he was going to pass out from the pain. How could there be such a huge difference in power between these two?

The Saibaman stood over his opponent, his eyes hungry for combat and his nose desperate for the scent of blood. The goblin slammed his elbow into Max's back. Lightning Max screamed in pain. Stinger and Death Gatling turned away, too horrified to look. Still unsatisfied, the saibaman sunk his claws on the top of the A class heroes neck, and scraped downward, all the way to the base of his waist.

Vegeta and Nappa were wide eyed at the sight of the saibaman's brutality. "Surprising. Even Frieza hasn't come up with something as gruesome as that. I'm impressed."

"Stop it! He's on the ground groveling in pain! Give him some time to recover!" protested Stinger.

"I believe Nappa said the Saibamen could battle however they pleased, unless you would like to take his place…"

Death Gatling and Stinger met each other's eyes, and both knew neither of them could be spectators in this torture.

"Drill Stinger!"

The saibaman's torture session was interrupted, as he felt Stinger's pointed spear tear a hole through the center of his chest, sending him flying straight into a boulder. "Are you alright Lightning Max?" Stinger and Death Gatling helped him up to his feet, only to realize that he was already passed out. "Damn it." The 6th saibaman gradually stood, purple blood spewing out of his chest. He saw Stinger resting Lightning Max away from the fight, and his rage began to boil. A lowly insect with a stick as a weapon, capable of such damage? He winced in pain and put his knee on the ground. He knew there was only one way he could defeat Stinger.

The saiyan's were frozen, somewhat surprised the two fighters had intervened in the torture session. Vegeta simply shook his head in disappointment. There was a reason why these things were grown in a test tube, and he shouldn't have expected them to hold their own against a fighter with a power level of 1600. Vegeta thought about eliminating the Saibaman for it's failure, but decided against it, believing a slow, humiliating death would be a much better punishment.

"Well, if they're going to interrupt the match, then the rest of you can join in as well."

Just as the 5 saibamen were about to pounce on their prey, the 6th saibaman who was injured jumped onto Stinger, wrapping himself around his arms and waist so he couldn't use his spear.

"Hey, what are you doing?! Get off!" Stinger frantically tried to release himself from the hold, squirming, kicking, even biting, but nothing could loosen the Saibaman's iron grip. Stinger's eyes widened when he saw the saibaman illuminating. What was the Saibaman doing?

"STINGER!"

Stinger looked at Death gatling with pleaful eyes, and Death Gatling watched in horror as the saibaman exploded right in front of his eyes. A huge ball of fire and energy burst from the explosion, blinding everyone around them.

Death Gatling opened his eyes, hoping and praying that he didn't see what he thought he saw. "STINGER! Are you alright?!" He desperately searched for him, and found him lying in a crater, completely still. He was lying face down on the ground, his stinger tip broken off from the staff, and the staff broken off into dozens of tiny pieces. Death Gatling became nauseated by the realization that occurred to him: Stinger was dead.

A few meters away, the saibamen were whooping in pleasure, ecstatic that they had gotten their first kill. But they knew they wouldn't get the rush they desired from just watching. Without warning, the 5 saibamen swung their legs at the two remaining heroes, sending them rolling and pummeling into the ground, shattering the ribcages of the A class heroes and taking away whatever fighting spirit or energy they had left.

Vegeta scoffed, crossing his arms in frustration. The three "heroes" were already down, and it hadn't even been 10 minutes. Extremely disappointed in the heroes inability to combat these minor training insects, Vegeta cleared his throat for attention. "Saibamen, I find there is no more amusement in watching these creatures sad display of combat. Finish them off." The prince's patience had long past, and both saiyans knew they were strict for time, so they could no longer afford to spend it with the luxury of torture.

The saibamen more than happily complied to the Prince's request. These humans weren't nearly the sport they thought they would be. The saibamen who fought the very short battle with Death Gatling placed his foot on his head. A ball of orange energy appeared at the palm of the creature as he extended his palm to Stinger's torso. "Heheheheh… HAHAHAHHAHA!" The goblin couldn't even feel the cold steel that sliced through his neck. The 5 saibamen were petrified. The creature was barely conscious enough to see the fighter that killed him: A slick, black clothed warrior with a katana in his right hand.

Nappa and Vegeta stared intently at this new warrior. The speed at which the warrior attacked was several levels faster than these 3 heroes. "And who exactly might you be?"

The fighter looked up at the two warriors, and grinned in glee. "I am Speed of Sound Sonic."

* * *

 _Now I know I'm going to get A LOT of complaints since I will be estimating the power levels of several fighters even though I don't know it. This was a somewhat difficult chapter to write, since I'm relatively new in the fight scene area, so I will probably be making edits to the chapters as I go along. Thanks for the views!_


	4. A Speedy Little Prick

"My name is Speed of Sound Sonic."

The 5 saibamen were taken aback by this warrior's sudden entrance. None of them had any reaction time whatsoever to respond to his attack. They unconsciously started to tremble with fear at this warriors might.

Vegeta, however, scoffed at this newcomer's entrance. "Speed of Sound Sonic? Are you so insecure that speed of sound sonic was the only name that would make you feel better?"

Sonic's demeanor didn't change a shade, his confidence still at an all time high. He had been doing his daily training exercise, when out of nowhere, he saw two warriors with the oddest clothing he had ever seen flying across the sky. At first, he dismissed it with reluctance, thinking it wasn't anything worth investing his time in, but his interest piqued when he saw a flashing light radiating about 20 miles from where he was.

When he arrived, he saw three fighters huddled in fright and the two other warriors crossing their arms in a condescending manner. He almost vomited his lunch when those 6 grotesque creatures emerged from the ground with malevolent smiles plastered on their faces. He was about to intervene and wipe those smirks off their faces, but stopped himself when the saibaman began to fight one of the heroes he had seen lying unconscious before against the Deep Sea King. Sonic shook his head in disappointment when the hero quickly fell prey to the little gremlin.

Still waiting for the opportune moment, Sonic continued to spectate the battle and watched this abysmal duel unfold. But even Sonic had a shock factor, and that factor was reached when he saw the saibaman detonated himself along with another hero who had fought the Deep Sea King. But he always believed luck was merely training met with opportunity, and he finally found the perfect opportunity to strike when the saibaman was distracted with the third hero and sliced through his neck just as he had done with many others before him.

Nappa didn't like to admit it, but he was rather surprised with this newbies arrival. His eyes had some difficulty tracking this freak ninja's movements, and none of the saibamen registered it either. Vegeta had noted Nappa's difficulty with tracking his movements as well, so out of curiosity, Vegeta checked Sonic's energy level, and his eyes nominally widened.

"Nappa! This fighters a breed above the other's! His power level is 8,000!

"What?!" Nappa and the 5 saibamen turned to Vegeta in disbelief. Had they heard him correctly? 8,000?

The deadly ninja smirked in confidence, assuming from the looks on their faces that the number 8,000 on whatever measuring system they used was a number they weren't used to fighting. "As you've just realized, I'm not like these weaklings you just finished dealing with, and today will be your demise."

"RAHHHH!" The saibaman angrily lunged at the ninja to catch him off guard, but their best efforts proved to be futile as their heads were sliced off just like their fallen comrade. They plopped to the ground and sounded as hallow as fresh coconuts falling from a palm tree, only proving how truly stupid they were beside their inept killing abilities. Sonic sheathed his blade and simultaneously smiled his child-like glee, radiating an excited aura hungering for the blood of his foes. All five were dead, and he hadn't even broken up a sweat. How utterly pathetic.

"I guess you're not all talk. You have the walk to prove it."

"Still confident after I effortlessly wiped out your minions? It's a shame. If you had only shown me the respect I'm due, I might have let your demise be swift and painless. But now that you've gotten on my nerve, I've decided that I'm going to drag this on for a little while longer."

Nappa looked enthusiastically at Prince Vegeta like a puppy would to his owner. "Hey Vegeta, you mind if I take this guy? He looks as thin as a toothpick. I could land one punch and he'd be coughing up blood."

"Oh is that so?" Sonic clasped his arms behind his body. "Well in that case why don't you prove it tough guy? Lets see what the "mighty" Saiyan General as you call yourself can do against a deadly ninja assasin such as myself."

Nappa's eyes were waiting the prince's command to engage. Vegeta waved his hand through the air and closed his eyes in boredom. "Go right ahead. Kick this little smart ass into the ground. The last battle with the saibamen was far too short; lets see if this one will prove more entertaining." Nappa fisted the air in triumph. "Yes! First, I'll take my scouter off. Don't want Frieza and his two wretch men to bug me about it." The saiyan briskly took his scouter off and placed it next to Vegeta for safekeeping. "Alright "Speed of Sound" Sonic. Behold the wrath of the Saiyan Elite!"

His aura flickered, and then he allowed his ki to explode from his body, the bright yellow aura consuming everything around him. In less than a moment notice, the Saiyan General shouted and released his pent up energy, shaking the landscape and the Earth itself. Sonic almost lost his footing from the shock waves stemming from his foe. "How is this possible? How can there be a person with the energy to shake the ground like it's loose sand? There's no way you can be human!" said Sonic with a minute waver in his voice.

The energy surge came to a sudden halt, and Nappa slowly looked up and stared into Sonic's eyes, his eyes dark with a primeval lust to kill. "Exactly." Before Sonic had a chance to give him a proper response, Nappa launched himself right at Sonic, happily embracing his overwhelming need for blood. Sonic narrowly dodged his attack, in awe at this surprising speed in spite of his gargantuan size. Dissatisfied, Nappa angrily shouted and continued to go on the offensive with a barrage of punches, all of which Sonic was still able to dodge, albeit with cautious movements. As Sonic jumped away from Nappa's reach, Nappa became lost in a state of confusion. This didn't make any sense. Nappa was fighting at around 90% of his maximum power, 9,000, which was 1,000 more than this ninja poser, but despite this, he still couldn't land a single punch on him. Nappa clenched his teeth with fierce anger.

Vegeta was staring intently at this duel with growing interest. Fascinating. It appeared that this Speed of Sound Sonic specialized much more in his speed and less on his physical strength, a very odd fighting strategy he rarely encountered in his wars with warriors of several planets he fought. "Nappa, watch your step. This is a slippery one. One misstep and you could end up just like those saibamen."

"Alright Alright! I got it!"

"Well let's see if you can handle this." Sonic realized that in terms of power, he was outmatched, and while his speed was certainly above his opponent's level, he was still fast enough that he could keep up with Sonic or at least make it difficult for him to constantly dodge. So in order to make sure he wouldn't give him the chance, he had to go all out and use his maximum power, utilize his most effective killing abilties. But what secretly worried him even more was the way he seemed to submissively take orders from the smaller saiyan. If that smaller saiyan was in charge, then he must be much more powerful than he is, and if that really was the case, then Sonic didn't know how he was going to stop him. But now wasn't the time to ponder on that fact. All he could do right now was hold his own against his current opponent, and see where it went from there.

Nappa's mind was in a flurry of disorientation as he tried to make works of Sonic's speed and where he might be, but all he could see was blurs of his form. No, what he saw was multiple copies of him, spanning all around him. He couldn't tell whether they were actual copies, or if his these were simply his afterimages. What kind of technique was this?

Sonic felt proud of himself. The force behind Sonic's speed and increased training regiment clearly showed, as the ground was torn apart and rocks smashed wherever he landed. He had planned to use this new technique against Saitama, but he guessed that now was as good a time as ever. Sonic smirked in delight, his splintered confidence now contently reforming when he saw Nappa's face twisted in confusion and irritation. "What's the matter? With all your macho talk, can't the mighty saiyan general keep up with my "inferior" speed?"

"Shut your mouth! How dare you talk to an elite like that! I'm the production of one of the mightiest races in the universe, and combined with the genes of my saiyan ancestors, that makes me the ultimate saiyan general! How can a worm like you ever comprehend such merit?!"

"You talk too much." Sonic used that moment of self indulgence to strike, but sadly Nappa realized this early enough to escape, but not early enough to leave unscathed. Sonic's blade managed to cut through his right cheek; the cold steel from the katana swept through his warm flesh, his wound stinging when his blood met with the cold air. Nappa rubbed his wound, trying to alleviate some of the pain, but to no avail. Nappa wiped the blood off of his face, and then looked to see Sonic standing just meters away from him, staring down on him as if he were already defeated. "How weak. You may have strength, but when it comes down to it, you lack the speed to keep up with me, and that is precisely the reason why you will die today. I guess I overestimated your abilities based on the little light show you displayed earlier."

Tightening his fists, his face darkened with anger, the shiny tint of light from his baldhead now gone, replaced with the black luster of unmitigated fury. "Why you little bastard…. DIE!" Letting his unparalleled rage get the best of him, Nappa resumed his onslaught of attacks, his reasoning gone and quickly replaced with resentment and a desire to kill the prick in front of him.

Sonic, on the other hand, was calmer than ever, noting how much easier it was to dodge his attacks when he lost control of his emotions. At this rate, Sonic knew that Nappa's defenses would be lowered with his mind too fixated on attack. Knowing this, Sonic continued to avoid his attacks as usual, using his speed to keep Nappa on the offensive.

As the fight dragged on, Nappa began to notice several cuts forming on his body. At first, he thought he was grazed by some rocks, but he then realized that Sonic had landed several minor blows without severely injuring him enough that it would force Nappa to draw his attention to the wounds. With these combined injuries, his muscles were starting to ache. But instead of coming to his senses, he allowed himself to be further indulged in his anger, and continued his bombardment of punches. "LITTLE PRICK! YOU'LL BE BEGGING FOR DEATH BY THE TIME I'M DONE MANGLING YOUR GIRLY BODY!"

"NAPPA GET A HOLD OF YOURSELF!" Vegeta watched this display with contempt. This ninja knew how to use his opponent's weaknesses to his advantage, and Vegeta knew that if he continued to let this battle play on as it is, Nappa would eventually pass out from the pain of Sonic's incisions. "HIS CASUAL ATTITUDE AND SNIDE COMMENTS ARE WHAT'S GIVING HIM THE UPPER HAND, AND YOU'RE NEEDLESS ANGER IS PLAYING RIGHT INTO HIS HANDS!" Vegeta sneered at Nappa's stupidity. If this continued, Vegeta would have to step in, all because Nappa was too stupid to see the obvious.

Nappa gritted his teeth and shot a look of contempt at his superior, but he realized that Vegeta was correct, and letting his composure go would get him nowhere. So, in order to calm himself, he took a deep breath in, closed his eyes, and exhaled, letting all his rage leave his body with it. "You're right. Sorry I let myself get carried away like that. I almost lost it there." Nappa set his sights on Sonic, who was not expecting Vegeta to intervene like that. "You really are a slippery one, I'll give you that. Getting me all worked up like that wasn't too shabby. If you'd continued like before, I probably would have been done for in a matter of minutes. But that stops right now." Sonic's eyes widened at the sight of a white aura beginning to envelop the saiyan general, and once again, the earth around him was quaking in his power, while bits of rock and ground began to rise from the earth as if honoring the great destruction residing in this warrior.

With his composure now in check, the saiyan general was able to think much more rationally. Due to the fact that Sonic was almost completely on the defensive, it would be safe to assume that he did so purposely because he knew he wasn't as physically strong as Nappa, and that quick attacks that dealt small damage would be the only way to take Nappa down. But there was no way Nappa would give him that chance again. With his body now surrounded by his aura, he assumed a fighting pose similar to Sonic. "Let's start round two, shall we?" The 2nd round begun with Nappa lunging for Sonic, his demeanor much more refined.

This wasn't good. Sonic was having a much, much more difficult time avoiding his attacks, and with every punch, they got closer and closer to making contact. It appeared that when Nappa was calm, his skills became much more honed; a problem Sonic didn't know how to solve instantaneously. He thought about insulting him, but it appeared that Nappa had already learned to be unaffected by Sonic's insults, and if Sonic didn't focus entirely on avoiding his attack's, he could slip up and get a punch to the gut. He simply didn't even have enough time to counterattack, to return the blows with his katana. Sonic's luck quickly ran out when Nappa struck him with a strong right kick to his chest, which Sonic didn't have time to either block or dodge. The force of the attack sent Sonic pummeling back, and he was only just able to stop himself from colliding with the rock by propelling his feet forward against the rock to mitigate the force of the blow.

"How'd you like that pretty boy? What was that you were saying about me being too slow to keep up with you?" Sonic clutched his chest as he felt a large pain searing through his body. He was pretty sure that he broke a rib or two with that kick, but even now he found that impossible to believe. How could a single punch have enough power to cause such damage? Gradually getting up, Sonic swiftly jumped into the air and threw his exploding shurikens at Nappa. He hoped they would have had at least enough force to distract him, but the saiyan general didn't even blink when Sonic threw the shurikens. Once the shurikens exploded, Sonic jumped down and prepared his signature strike. "Wind Blade Kick!" But the saiyan general was ready for another sneak attack like such, and he smoothly caught Sonic's foot. Sonic grimaced. Hd had drastically miscalculated how fast and how powerful the saiyan general was, along with his combat experience. He should have retreated while he had the chance, cowardly as it might be.

Nappa showily gleamed and threw Sonic to the ground again and again and again like he was a rag doll. Sonic winced in tremendous pain and felt a coughing fit fill his chest as he coughed up blood aimed for Nappa's ankles. Nappa grunted in disgust and kicked Sonic's head away from him. The fallen ninja grabbed his head, closing his eyes to deal with the growing pain. This was pathetic. He, a deadly ninja who had honed his skills to perfection, being knocked down in 2 blows and crawling on the floor like a baby? How?

Vegeta maliciously laughed at the prideful ninja's deplorable groveling. For all that talk and all that show, he was nothing but a sneaky weasel that relied on his tricks and toys to do a real killers job. He had to admit, he actually thought Sonic might have ended Nappa's life, but now that he was witnessing Sonic's actual power and it's flaws, there was no doubt in his mind Nappa was already the victor.

Desiring for more humiliation, Nappa seized the fallen ninja by the face. "Now look who's the pathetic one. It's you, you arrogant shithead!" Forcefully throwing the beaten rag doll to a large boulder, the boulder shattered, leaving Sonic buried under a frenzy of broken rocks and high altitude dust clouds. Too battered and broken to fight back, Sonic laid there barely conscious, filled with nothing but a deep sense of indignity at his defeat. Even after all his training, there was still somebody who was worlds ahead of his strength, and there wasn't anything he could do about it. He was wrong. Today would be his demise, not Nappa's.

Nappa casually strode over to his opponent, elated to see the warrior's barely conscious body and droopy eyes. "Look's like you're all tapped out, kid. Since you landed a few scratches on me, I figure that you at least deserve the honor of having your measly life ended with my ultimate technique."

Nappa threw Sonic into the air, soon starting to gather all of his ki into his throat, the bright yellow aura shimmering around his body and in his throat as well as he channeled the energy.

The Saiyan Prince snickered. "The only technique that's a good use for your mouth."

"Breaker Cannon!"

"Incinerate!"

Vegeta looked to his right, and his mouth twisted at what he saw. Vegeta couldn't believe that two MORE warriors had just shown up out of the blue to join in the battle once again. The Demon Cyborg and Caped Baldy appeared together as usual, intervening once again in a set in stone outcome just seconds away from occurring. A clash between two beams of energy ensued. Nappa's Breaker Cannon and Genos' Incineration cannons collided, both warriors unwilling to surrender in this ongoing struggle. It appeared this engagement had another spectator, as the illustrious Caped Baldy was standing blank-faced and arms crossed just a few dozen meters away from the collision. He had noticed Sonic's lifeless form and caught him midair just in the nick of time before that beam had hit him. Now the fallen ninja lay unconscious beside Saitama.

"Who the hell are these two clowns?" thought Vegeta out loud. Another combatant who had more or less power equal to Nappa's? How many more unexpected warriors would turn up to fight?

The full brunt of these pulverizing blasts sparkled and sizzled in the sky, burning all the grass and trees until they were nothing but a pile of ash blowing into the wind, entering the nostrils of the 4 fighters. Nappa's senses were heightened, no livened, in this brawl between energies. Saitama stood rather impressed at his disciple's durability against this guy's power. Whoever he was, he certainly wasn't a pushover that's for sure. He wanted to interfere, but he figured that it was high time he gave a chance for Genos to get some more training in. He felt kind of guilty since he never actually gave Genos any physical training exercises with the one exception of their short one-on-one brawl. He kind of wanted to see how this played out. And even if Genos managed to take this guy out, he had a gut feeling that the shorty sitting on the rock over there was the leader of the duo, so then Saitama would still have the chance to have some fun.

Both fighters were astonished at their opponent's resilience against each of their most powerful attacks. Geno's incineration attack gradually became to overcome Nappa's Breaker Cannon, with Nappa wincing as he saw a molten orange beam gain ground and move closer and closer to him. His jaw felt tender and raw from the way this showdown was proceeding.

But what the two spectators did not realize was that Geno's was at his limit's end, while Nappa's saiyan biology gave him more than enough chances to increase his strength.

'I won't allow myself to be beaten like this, not by any scum. They have no idea what I've gone through to become this powerful, and no insignificant worm is ever going to get the best of me, not like this.' So surging with new energy, Nappa channeled this energy and yelled, discharging at an alarming rate and putting everything he had into his ultimate technique.

Geno's eyes widened in panic as he could almost feel the control of the battle turning over to the mysterious being, and he gasped in woe at the blue energy that started to envelop him, and it would have destroyed him had Saitama not pulled him away from the blast. Nappa's Breaker Cannon soared in the sky, breaking through the stratosphere and exiting the exosphere in a matter of seconds. As if timed, the energy blast exploded in space, illuminating not only the battlefield, but also the entire face of the planet.

For a little while, the aftermath of the power struggle created huge clouds of dust, preventing anyone from seeing the outcome of the short-lived energy collision. Nappa cringed and grabbed his jaw. The last time he had been forced to use his ultimate attack like that was against King Vegeta in their intense brawl over 20 years ago. Not even the Prince had ever chosen to clash with him this fiercely. At least the latecomer was dead, and he and the Prince could search for the strongest fighter on this planet. "Come on Prince Vegeta. Let's go. We're done here."

"I wouldn't be so sure about that Nappa." At first, Nappa didn't understand what he meant, but his question was answered when he saw the robotic looking warrior laid down next to an idiotic looking douche with the most retarded costume he had ever seen in his entire life. "Hey who the fuck are you?"

Saitama did nothing to acknowledge the bald general, proceeding to place Genos right beside Sonic and the other 3 warriors conveniently passed out beside him. "You didn't do too bad Genos. You're a bit better than when I fought you." Faintly awake enough to hear his master's praise, Genos smiled before blacking out into the void of unconsciousness. "Guess it's just me now. Cool."

Nappa aggravated that he was being ignored, bared his teeth to the caped hero. "Hey baldy! I'm talking to you! Just who the fuck do you think you are interrupting me like that?"

Snidely smirking, Saitama expressly looked at the floating mysterious being, and calmly stated: "I'm just a regular guy who's a hero for the fun of it."

The bald saiyan stood fuming at his blatant half-ass response. "A hero for the fun of it? You look like a retarded stereotype of fucking ultraman (space version of superman) who just entered a costume contest for dumbasses! And look at your bald head! It looks like you dipped it in oil!"

Saitama frowned and clenched his fists. "The fuck did you say to me?! Look who's talking! Your head looks like the tip of a dildo! If I paint you pink and shove batteries up your ass, will you vibrate?"

Vegeta laughed wholeheartedly. "Oh hoh hoh! The saiyan general handed to by a worm!"

"Why you MOTHER FUCKER!" Nappa flew up to Saitama and threw a right punch to him, but Saitama smoothly dodged, his angry expression now faded. He vanished, then reappeared behind Saitama and swung a ferocious left kick, but Saitama effortlessly caught it and threw him straight through a rock formation.

Vegeta uncrossed his arms and his smirk disappeared. "Might as well check how powerful this idiot is…" He clicked his scouter on, and scanned the energy level of Saitama.

But Vegeta's proud facade disappeared, and his heart fell down to the ground when he saw what his energy reading was at.. "No. No, this isn't possible. There's no way this can be right…" The scouter exploded and burst into flames, the sheer power of this bald intruder too much to process.

The saiyan prince staggered back in complete and absolute fear. His eyes that were lit with scorching pride were now dampened to nothing but fear-drenched pupils of a whimpering dog. He eventually bumped into a large boulder and almost, ALMOST cowered and crawled to the floor like a child, but he would never forgive himself if he submitted like that.

Nappa rubbed his head. That wasn't a good sign. "Vegeta, can you tell me his power level?"

"It's got to be some kind of trick, an illusion, the scouter's broken, anything!"

An anime-style sweat drop fell on Saitama's face. "Uhhh… Are you alright?"

"VEGETA! WHAT'S HIS POWER AT?!"

"His power level… It's -."


	5. The Simian Prince's Downfall

"His power level… It's -"

"-?! THERE'S NO WAY THAT CAN BE RIGHT! YOU'RE SCOUTER MUST BE MALFUNCTIONING!" Refusing to believe what his superior told him, Nappa sprinted over to his scouter, desperately hoping, no praying, that Vegeta's reading was wrong and that this baldy had a power level of 5. His prayers were unanswered, and Nappa's reading was exactly the same as Vegeta said. He quickly turned his scouter off so it wouldn't have enough time to explode from the gargantuan power level emitted by Saitama.

"No… Not even a god could have this sort of power…" His scouter fell to the ground, and he now replicated Vegeta's frightened position he had just moments ago.

All the while, Saitama's eyes were narrowed at the way these jerk-offs were pissing in their pants. What the hell was their problem? "Uhh do you guys need to like warm up or take a breather or something?"

Both saiyans snarled with fury. "What?"

"I mean you guys look like you're about to shit yourselves, so I'm letting you take a breather or whatever. I'll be waiting right here…" said Saitama; not a single feature changed on his face. Vegeta's fists were trembling with something in the middle of anger and fear. What kind of warrior would joke like this? The most infuriating part was that bored, bland expression on his face, as if the Prince of Saiyan's wasn't worth the time. "HOW DARE YOU MOCK THE PRINCE OF SAIYANS WITH YOUR NONCHALANT ATTITUDE!"

With the way that this guy was bawling before, he was surprised when he came lashing straight for him. Aiming for his bald blank face, Vegeta ended up hitting air. His pride refusing to let himself retreat like a coward, Vegeta continued showering Saitama with a flurry of punches, or at least that would be the case if Vegeta was actually fast enough to actually do something.

"NAPPA!" Nappa straightened himself, worried about Vegeta's furious tone of voice, "DID YOU FINALLY GET AN ANEURYSM FROM YOUR SHEER STUPIDITY?! STOP BEING AN IDIOT AND HELP ME KILL THIS SPINELESS LOWLIFE!"

"Yes Prince Vegeta!" Nappa was much more scared of Vegeta because unlike the baldy, he actually knew what Vegeta was capable of, and Nappa didn't want to lose his spine, or even worse, his tail. Saitama's eyes widened a fraction. In a lot of the cop movies he had seen, it was usually the smaller guys who served the big bad boss, but here it was like the other way around. So if the midget guy was in charge of the two, then there might be more to him than meets the eyes, and that kind of excited him. "I'm cool with taking both of you on. Fine by me."

With a blood-curdling scream, Nappa hurled himself at Saitama, his eyes burning with fury. With the deadly combination of years of combat experience and the brutality of the saiyan race, the two saiyan elite instinctively attacked Saitama, using their fists, feet, and cold hearted gazes to try and beat Saitama to a pulp. Alas, their best efforts proved to be futile, and Saitama was dodging their attacks or meeting their attacks head-on, stopping their attacks like they were nothing. It was like two puffed up kids trying to punch a brick wall: it only ended up hurting themselves.

"BASTARD!" Both warriors jumped up several meters in the air. Clasping their own hands together, they barreling down as their fists aimed for Saitama's sweet spot: his bald head. An eruption of yellow energy and minor dust clouds lit the sky like a colossal gold mushroom cloud.

Vegeta confidently laughed at Saitama's foolishness for taking that attack head-on. "Let's see you recover from that."

"Recover from what?" Yellow ki and smoke disappeared, and in the dead center of it was Saitama, completely uninjured, and staring at them as if nothing had happened. "Wait, was that supposed to do something?" The veins on Nappa's forehead heatedly throbbed. Never had he met anyone with such a bored expression on this face, as if neither the Saiyan General nor the Prince of Saiyan's was even close to matching or even entertaining him, like they weren't even worth getting serious for. "HOW ABOUT I GIVE YOU THE TASTE OF MY FOOT CRAMMED DOWN YOUR THROAT, SHIT-FOR-BRAINS?!" Nappa flew at Saitama with a hard right kick, but Saitama briskly dodged with ease.

But as Nappa was flying through midair, Saitama noticed the oddest thing wrapped around his waist. It was like a really furry belt, only it wasn't holding any pants up, or at least he thought. Wondering what it was, he grabbed the furry belt, and Nappa felt a weird tingly sensation course through his body. "What the fuck are you doing?"

"What's this weird thing around your waist? Is it like a fashion belt? Because it looks kinda cool."

Nappa stared disbelievingly at this guy. Was now really the time to comment on something as simple as his tail? "Let go of my tail!"

Saitama's eyes widened at this new revelation. "Wait, you have a tail? Woah. Never thought a person could grow one. You should enter yourself into those Guinness world record books." Nappa violently thrashed about, trying to break free from Saitama's death grip. "LET ME GO, YOU FUCKING DIPSHIT ASSHOLE!"

Saitama glanced convicting at Nappa's rude behavior. "Ok. Somebody's got to teach you some manners. It's guys like you that give bald people a bad name."

Nappa felt odd when he saw the ground below him start to move to the right. Unsure of what was happening, he looked at Saitama in horror when he saw a sly, evil grin in place of his expressionless mask. "What are you doing?"

Saitama's grin widened at his question. "Taking you for a ride."

Vegeta didn't know what was going on. He was about to take the moment of distraction to attack on unguarded Saitama, when suddenly Saitama started to spin Nappa around by the tail. What was he doing?

"Killer Move Serious Series: Serious Spin." Saitama gradually started to increase the speed of his spinning. Nappa would have tried to break free, but like he said, it was like Saitama's grip was magnetically stuck to his tail, and nothing he did could get him out of it. As the spinning only got faster, a huge current of wind started to envelop the two fighters, bringing up even more dust from the ground.

Vegeta watched in disbelief as this spinning began to turn into a full on tornado. The wind current spun and spun around like invisible axes, cutting down everything around it and sucking whatever rocks, trees, or debris was still left from the ground and lifting it for the sky. This monumental tornado was only growing in size, now hovering hundreds of meters in the air; it's winds now up to speeds of hundreds of miles per hour. If Saitama had done this in any city, there was no doubt that town would have been reduced to rubble.

All the while, Vegeta was stunned speechless; his body now limp from fear. "That tornado is massive. No fighter could accumulate such wind speeds simply from spinning himself around! It isn't humanly possible!"

The cataclysmic tornado leisurely began to die down. The hundreds of rocks and other debris swallowed up by the tornado fell to the ground with a thud. The smoke cleared, and Vegeta stood awestricken that Saitama was standing perfectly still, his hands still wrapped around Nappa's tail.

"Well I hope that teaches you a lesson." Nappa's brain was still spinning circles. "Uh… Are you alright?" Saitama let go of Nappa's tail and put him upright on his feet to give him a breather, but Nappa immediately dropped to his knees as a spell of dizziness came rushing through his brain.

"Nappa get a hold of yourself!" The Saiyan General obeyed his prince and focusing solely on his legs, slowly got up on his two feet. However, this still proved to be useless. Nappa's senses were completely knocked out of sync, way out of whack with his body. He felt like his hands were attached to his feet, and that somehow the entire world was upside down and he was right side up. And to top it all off, his stomach wasn't feeling too comfortable with the little spin show, so in response, Nappa chucked up his entire morning breakfast and lunch.

Saitama's face scrunched in slight disgust. "Gross man."

Vegeta was stammering, unable to believe what he was seeing. "He dropped Nappa to his knees just by spinning him. What the hell is this guy?"

"So hey, you mind telling me what that hairy thing around your waist is?" Vegeta forcefully turned his head at Saitama's bored, retarded expression. Nappa might not have had the skills to even keep up his lunch, but there was absolutely no way the Prince of Saiyans would allow himself to be subdued by such a ridiculous attack.

Vegeta launched a hardcore series of collisions and punches at Saitama. Their movements were unbelievably fast, the mere pressure from their blows enough to send shockwaves that shook the ground below them. Just as Vegeta threw a hard right roundhouse kick at Saitama, he suddenly vanished from his sight. "What?" Vegeta searched around frantically for Saitama, but was humiliated once more when Saitama reappeared right beside him and tapped his nose with his finger. "Hah got you know. That's 1-0 for me."

That playful attitude did it for Vegeta. Furiously flying out of the battle into the sky, he knew there was only one way to defeat this bastard. It might destroy the planet and himself if he was unlucky, but he would be damned before he would let himself be beaten like a pathetic low class weakling like Raditz. His pride wouldn't allow it.

"YOU'RE POWERFUL, BUT LET'S SEE HOW YOU HANDLE MY ULTIMATE ATTACK! IF YOU DODGE, YOU'RE PRECIOUS PLANET WILL BE DESTROYED IN THE PROCESS!"

Saitama's plaid face changed to his serious demeanor. Virginia was now emitting a bright purple aura as he cupped his hands together in the sky. The ground was shaking all around him, something that Saitama didn't expect. It was a lot like when he fought Bolos or whatever his name was, but his senses were telling him that this was going to be A LOT weaker than when he fought Boros.

"GALICK GUN! FIRE!" A huge purple beam of energy was released from Vegeta's hands as he screamed in adrenaline-fueled fury. Saitama simply stood in his place, not at all worried about the attack heading for him, something that Vegeta noticed, making him even more furious. So he was still acting like he was nothing? He would regret his mistake right before he was turned into a pile of ash.

"I don't think one of my serious series is needed to stop this thing, soooo, like this?" Saitama lightly slapped at the energy wave, and like that, it was sent hurtling high up into the atmosphere and out or orbit. Vegeta's Galick Gun exploded as it left the exosphere, lighting up the small portion of the planet they were fighting on.

Vegeta was panting like a dog, his face still covered with dirt and the blood from his one sided battle. "He swatted away my ultimate attack like he was swatting a mosquito. How..."

"Hey I heard that! Me and mosquitoes don't get along too well either!"

Vegeta stammered. This fighter, he wasn't natural. The way he did everything with such apparent relaxation wasn't right. Vegeta didn't know what else he could do to stop him. But wait. Vegeta thought back to the way Saitama spun Nappa around, and that he was holding his tail! The TAIL!

As if somehow responding to his thoughts, Nappa slowly and groggily pushed himself off of the ground, noticing Vegeta in the sky and more importantly, his hands. Did he… Did he use the Galick Gun? That was his ultimate technique. He destroyed 3 planets at once with that attack, but Saitama was still standing there without a single scratch, not even a smudge on his outfit.

"Nappa! I believe it's time we show this scum what we're truly capable of."

"What are you…" Vegeta pointed at his tail, and Nappa's eyes widened as big as saucers. "You couldn't possibly mean…"

Vegeta clenched his teeth. Their Great Ape transformations was their most powerful transformation. Smashing city after city, stomping on warriors like they were stomping on sticks, the Great Ape transformation was something that the saiyans, and more importantly, Frieza, had used to their advantage when taking over planets many times. But to use it on a single person? He hated having to use the saiyan's transformation like this as a trump card, but Vegeta knew it was the only thing that could have even a remote chance of defeating this bald freak of nature. "Yes, we must transform."

Nappa knew Vegeta must be desperate if he meant triggering the great ape transformation. Anybody who didn't know Vegeta wouldn't have understood what Nappa was talking about, but he raised Vegeta.

As a child, he constantly persevered to break the limits of his body, refusing help from anyone but himself. In everything he ever did, he wanted to tackle it head on with nobody's support, only relying on his keen instincts and honed fighting abilities. By transforming, he was thus sacrificing part of his pride by admitting he couldn't win in his regular state. "Very well, Prince Vegeta."

Saitama was scratching his head in confusion. "What's going on?"

Vegeta and Nappa maliciously grinned at Saitama. "After we're through with you, you're gonna be wishing you'd just bowed down in defeat." Saitama just stared at them blankly, still not getting what they were talking about.

"Well you see, we are two members of an elite class of an extinct warrior race, known across the universe as some of the most ruthless and powerful fighters in all of history. But what makes the Saiyan race like no other is our transformation. You see, when a full moon rises, the moon releases blutz waves…"

"Bultz waves?"

"Blutz waves. You see, when sunlight is bounced from the moon's surface, it causes a nominal shift in the size of the wavelength, and when the moon is full, their intensity is over 17 million zenos. When we saiyans are struck with these blutz waves, we undergo a change, a metamorphosis if you will, that allows us to transform into gargantuan, unstoppable apes that destroy everything in sight. While in our Great Ape form, our power is increased to heights you couldn't possibly fathom."

Saitama looked around at the sky to try and find the key component to their transformation. "But… There's no moon out."

Vegeta and Nappa laughed in amusement. "Thank you for telling us; we hadn't noticed. But luckily for you, us saiyans of the highest elite, we have learned to create a satellite with the zeno emissions necessary to spark the change in our body, allowing us to access the transformation at any time!" A pale white ball suddenly formed on Vegeta's right hand. "Now prepare yourself to face the wrath of the Prince of Saiyan's Inner Oozaru!"

"You're going to be groveling in the dirt just begging for mercy by the time I'm through with you!" said an overly excited Nappa.

Vegeta craned his arm back in a kind of sideways pitcher stance, then chucked the ball high up into the sky. Vegeta and Nappa both looked at the ball in the sky, waiting for the transformation to begin. The saiyans felt an abrupt surge of power in their bodies, and at that moment, they both knew the transformation had begun.

Saitama was standing just meters away with his arms crossed and his tasteless expression apparent as always. Suddenly, the saiyan's cold onyx eyes changed to a dark crimson red. They both started groaning and moaning as they gradually began to grow in size. Their faces, no, every part of their body, was starting to grow thick padded hair. Even their noses were oddly starting to change shape, elongating into a sort of snout. They screamed in what appeared to be agony as they grew to extraordinary heights, but nowhere near as tall as that one giant Saitama had punched in B-city.

"Their armor's stretched with their clothes. I wish my suit could be that durable," said Saitama with palpable jealousy.

The Great Apes breathed heavily once their transformation was finished. It had been a few months since they had dusted this transformation off. They forgot how painful it was if not used consistently.

"So, puny earthling, what do you think of our new transformation now? I imagine you'll want to be surrendering now that you truly understand the situation you're in. Our Great Ape states amplify our powers ten times over, allowing us even more abilities you couldn't possibly fathom. All the while, you'll be worn down and be defeated by the sheer might of your saiyan…"

"SHUT UP!" The great apes eyes widened. That was the first he raised his voice to that extremity. "YOU'RE VOICE SOUNDS EVEN MORE ANNOYING NOW THAN IT DID BEFORE! IT'S GONNA GIVE ME A MIGRANE!"

Vegeta stood fazed at first, but then let out a long and hefty laugh, putting his hands to his chest as he did so. "Trying to overcome the shaking fear in your heart with tough words? I'LL HAVE YOU SHOVING THOSE WORDS BACK INTO YOUR MOUTH BY THE TIME I'M DONE WITH YOU!"

Before Saitama could say anything, Vegeta's foot slammed him straight down into the ground. "Take the wrath of the Prince of Saiyan's Mighty Oozaru!" Vegeta continued his attack with a barrage of punches. The pure force of his punches began to create a crater that only widened and deepened with every punch he threw.

Vegeta now jumped up into the air and gathered all of the energy in his body, his body now radiating his inner purple aura. Nappa stood in awe as Vegeta prepared his Galick Gun, no less in his Great Ape form. "Prince Vegeta! You'll destroy the whole planet with that much energy! STOP!"

"TAKE THIS! SUPER GALICK GUN!"

A huge stream of purple energy was released from Vegeta's hands, about 5 times bigger than Vegeta's Galick Gun just minutes ago. The attack was a direct hit, perfectly nailing Saitama who was still lying in the ditch. Thousands of tiny rocks soared and splintered from the ground, hitting both Nappa and Vegeta like tiny pecks, not hurting them in the slightest.

Vegeta was panting as he descended from the sky. The battlefield was now nothing but a large crater with only the 6 earthlings left to remind them of the battle that just ensued. Even though Vegeta was broiling with rage, he had made his Galick Gun unique so it wouldn't explode or expand when it made contact with Saitama, just like he had done with his previous Galick Gun.

It was a skill that he learned to develop over the years to make sure when they were invading civilizations that they wouldn't destroy the important cities and resources that were most valuable in their raiding's. It had taken a while, but Vegeta eventually learned to master the skill and successfully apply it in his missions.

"Come on Nappa, let's go. We'll just tell Frieza that the strongest fighter was one of these 6 weaklings and lie about their strength."

"Not awful. You weren't lying about that amplified power…" Vegeta's crimson eyes must have been deceiving him. Saitama was standing there, clothes tattered but otherwise looking like he hadn't taken any damage. "How are you still alive? You took that blast head on…"

"HUMAN BASTARD!" Nappa lowered to a jumping position, then hurdled himself toward Saitama. The Saiyan General attempted to pummel him with his fists, but he was dodging them as easily as he had been dodging them in his regular state.

"For the skilled fighters you say you are, you're not all that smart…

Nappa shot him an incremental look. "What are you talking about?"

"You might have gained a lot of strength by transforming, but in terms of speed, you're just as fast as you were before, if not even slower."

Nappa's crimson eyes darkened even more to a blood red shade. "How dare you insult the fighting knowledge of the Saiyan General! I became a saiyan prodigy before you were even toilet trained!" Nappa gathered all of his ki to his leg, and then swung a powerful right roundhouse kick at Saitama, but Saitama effortlessly caught his leg.

"No… IMPOSSIBLE!"

"Consecutive Normal Punches," said Saitama as a barrage of red-gloved fists attacked Nappa, sending him flying and crashing through boulders.

Saitama inwardly sighed in relief. Normally, he wouldn't have tried to hold back as much against these monsters, but he wasn't really comfortable with killing regular people, even if they could change form. And from what they said, this ape change wasn't permanent, so he'd decided to take it back even more, just for him.

Saitama stared at Vegeta, who was still reeling from the shock of having his Super Galick Gun. He sighed in disappointment. "Looks like my senses were wrong. These guys weren't nearly as good as I thought they would be. I should just end this now." And with that disappointing thought in mind, Saitama flew toward Great Ape Vegeta and hit him square in the nose with his fist

Vegeta screamed in agony as he clutched onto his now bleeding nose. Saitama knew that the stuck-up heroes probably wouldn't have been too happy if he spared these guys, so he came to the conclusion that if these guys were in human form, then maybe they would lay off of him for sparing them.

He was scratching his head since he hadn't gotten that far ahead through the thought process, but then he remembered that short guy Vegena or whatever his name was shot a weird white ball into the air. So if he was a guessing man, he would say that if that white ball was destroyed, then they might return to normal. The caped hero shrugged. "Worth a shot."

Saitama bent down, then shot himself high up into the air. He lazily searched for the white ball as he was soaring into the sky, when he finally found it flying all alone in the light blue sky. He flapped his arms to his side to try and get himself closer to the ball, until he was standing just inches away. "Maybe if I just…"

Unsure of how to destroy it, he tried clapping it against his hands. In just a millisecond, the power ball was decimated by the power of Saitama's clap. The hero let out a tiny smile. "It worked. Cool."

He gradually began to descend form the sky, and while he was dropping down, he caught the two Apes shrinking in size, their body hair sinking back into their bodies.

While Saitama was slowly landing on the ground, Vegeta silently grabbed the remote hidden in his chest plate and called his space pod to his location. There was no chance of beating this warrior. He was simply too strong. There was no other way to put it. It was as if he was a god, untouchable by any mortal in existence. He had left Vegeta, the Prince of the Saiyan Empire, broken, battered, swept aside like common trash, even in his most powerful state. Even when Vegeta unleashed his Galick Gun, his most powerful and devastating attack, Saitama had taken it like it was nothing but child's play. He was now forced to return to Frieza's ship in humiliating defeat.

His space pod speedily landed in his location. Since Vegeta and Nappa hadn't ventured too far from their original location, their space pods were close enough to be called upon and quickly locate their coordinates almost instantly. Broken and decrepit, Vegeta crawled to his space pod, when his motions were interrupted by the sound of his saiyan general.

"Vegeta… Please… Help me…" The energy in his body had all but vanished. While Saitama's Consecutive Normal Punches hadn't killed him, it had exhausted all the reserves of his strength, rendering him completely wiped out. He barely had the energy to grab the remote from his now ruined armor. So he turned to his Saiyan Prince to help them escape.

But Nappa's hopes were broken, shattered, and thrust into the wind when Vegeta spat in his direction. "You've failed your mission Nappa. You're abysmal intelligence and broken body has rendered you all but worthless to both Lord Frieza and I. You'll regret your insolence when these Earthlings torture you for the rest of your very short and pathetic life."

"Vegeta…" Nappa's shout was all but a whisper, unheard to anyone but Saitama as Vegeta's ship flew up into the sky and straight for Frieza's ship.

* * *

"Sitch, what is the meaning for these horrendous statistic reports?!"

Sitch was sitting in President Agoni's office, and truth be told, he felt like a kid who was just sent to the principal's office. He know he didn't do anything wrong per se, but he was the Minister Officer of Justice for the Hero Association, and so far he hadn't done his job quite well. He had to psyche himself up in the bathroom for 15 minutes just so he could gather the guts to face Agoni with these reports.

"I'm sorry sir, but unfortunately more demon and dragon levels threats have been popping up in these past few months, and so far the A and B class heroes have had a difficult time keeping up."

"If that's the case, how can it be that the reaction time to call S-Class heroes in is so limited?" Sitch gulped. "You see sir, many of the S class heroes are stubborn in the type of threat levels they deal with, and unfortunately many will neglect some demon class threats and choose to ignore them."

Agoni shot up from his chair and slammed his fist into the table. "Well get them in line then!"

"It's not so simple as to "get them in line". There isn't too much the Hero Association can do to change their minds, and given their extraordinary skillset, it's not like we can bully them or force them to fight the monsters they don't want to."

"And what of the property damages?! My phones have been ringing off the hook with calls from lawyers threatening to sue for property damages, personal injury, and reckless endangerment of lives! According to these layouts, Tornado of Terror in particular has totaled up to 50 million dollars in damages! This irresponsible manner of destroying the surrounding buildings is costing us not only millions of dollars, but it significantly hurts our reputation as well!"

"I'm sorry sir…" Sitch didn't know what to say. He knew everything President Agoni was saying was right, but the prideful natures of the S class heroes combined with the incompetence of many heroes in A through C class made it nearly impossible to solve these important issues.

Agoni sighed. "It's alright. I understand your difficulty dealing with these matters." Agoni plopped back into his chair, slouching as he rubbed his eyes in exhaustion. "I just don't know what to do with these many factors. What a disaster this is. It's times like these that part of me wishes my grandson had never been attacked by a Mysterious Being and I would have never come up with this ludicrous idea…"

Sitch stared at him quizzically. "Sir?"

"Just remembering how my grandson had been saved from a mysterious being three years ago. Are you familiar with the story?"

Sitch nodded in confirmation. "I am well aware of the story sir."

"Yes. It's a shame that I never got to learn the identity of the stranger."

"Yes. Rather unfortunate."

"I only wish some people were just as courageous as that man was."

A staff member burst through the door, interrupting the conversation. "President Agoni! Minister Sitch! I have urgent news!" The man looked completely exhausted. His uniform was covered with sweat stains, and his breathing rate was rather high.

"What news do you bring?"

The man spoke in a raspy and shallow voice. "We were looking through the belongings of Fortune Teller Shibabwa, and while looking through her room, we discovered a piece of paper hidden in her closet."

"And?"

"It was addressed to both of you at this exact date and this exact time and…" The two men held their breathes. "It's the rest of her final prophecy."


	6. Wounds and Scars

The Caped Baldy did nothing but watch as the Saiyan Prince retreated in his pod. Sure, he could have easily stopped the pod while it was midair, but he didn't think it was really worth the trouble. He'd let Sonic escape, even though he knew he was an assassin, and nothing bad had really come of it. What was the worst that could happen?

But what perplexed him was how the smaller saigan or whatever they called themselves let the bald comrade behind. I mean, these two were like partners. What kind of partner leaves the other partner behind with nothing? No way to go anywhere, no way to contact him, and no energy to even stand. That wasn't cool in Saitama's book. That was fucking weak.

Saitama nonchalantly and lazily walked over to the bald saiyan. Nappa was a complete mess. His armor was cracked, completely torn in every spot that Saitama had hit with his Consecutive Normal Punches. His tail was crushed under the weight of the many rocks scattered all over his body. Barely conscious enough to register Saitama's presence, he stared contemptibly into Saitama's eyes. "So what now? Are you going to kill me? Torture me?" Nappa's chest tightened up on him and he began to cough up blood. Saitama's Consecutive Normal Punches had done a number on his lungs and ribcage. Simply inhaling was enough to make Nappa wince in pain.

Saitama shrugged. "I'm not into that kind of stuff. Sounds gruesome. Not really my kind of style. Although the Hero Association might not be so happy about what and your tiny friend did to City D.

"You weren't all that bad. If I had to rank you, you'd probably be around the third to fifth strongest guy I've come up against. I mean sure you weren't hard to beat, but at least you got me out of the house for the day. There hasn't been anything good on the movie channels these past few days, and I've spent most of my time just flipping through the channels without finding anything remotely substantial."

"Bastard…" This was all Nappa said before he passed out from overwhelming pain and exhaustion. "Dude? You still with me?" Saitama poked Nappa's head and chest like a child to see if he was still conscious, but sadly enough, Nappa was out cold. Was he dead? He put his fingers on the vein of Nappa's throat. There was a slow but steady pulse. "Look's like it's your lucky day. Well, that depends on how you look at it, but at least you're not dead."

A bright beam of light emanating from the rising sun shone in Saitama, much to his annoyance. "Ah! What gives?" Lying alone on a small rock was Nappa's scouter, completely intact and undamaged.

Saitama picked up the scouter in mild fascination. He had never seen anything so plaid yet so cool looking. From what he could make from its design, it just seemed to be a pair of really big red sunglasses cut in half. That was cool enough in his book.

Fidgeting and playing with the scouter like a child with a toy truck, he latched the scouter onto his ear. The scouter had features one would not have expected on such a device, such as interior cushioning that made the scouter feel comfortable. "Cool feature. Wish I had headphones as comfortable as this thing," said Saitama to no one in particular.

Saitama slapped his forehead with the palm of his hand. He had completely forgotten about Genos. Knowing that Genos had taken a pretty big hit from Nappa's Breaker Cannon, Saitama jogged over to Genos at a medium pace. Next to the unconscious cyborg were Speed-O-Sound Sonic and three other guys who he had absolutely no knowledge of. All five of them were beaten mercilessly, with Sonic and Lightning Max's injuries being the most grave. "They took a real doozy."

A faint buzzing filled Saitama's ears. "Not this time…" Saitama slapped both his ears with rigorous force from his hands, believing that the noise was coming from more mosquitoes coming in to ruin his day. To his confusion, no tiny bugs fell on the ground. Saitama scratched his head like a monkey trying to solve a jigsaw puzzle.

As the sound was getting closer, he realized the sound was repeating in a spinning-type motion. Whirring in the air were five small droids all circling around Genos. "Hey! Get off of him!" Saitama swatted one of the droids away, effectively destroying it, and was about to do the same to the other four when Geno's eyes were relighted. "Genos?"

In a daze from his forced shutdown, it took him a few moments to register everything around him. As his internal visual scopes readjusted, he saw the vast, barren, and demolished landscape. He smiled when he saw his master hovering over him

"So what are these annoying things?" Saitama's blurted out the comment, interrupting Geno's analysis on his master's worried expression. "As I have stated before, my parts are easily replaceable due to my cybernetic body. However, my internal hard drive is stored deep within the center of my cranium."

"Crani what now?"

"My head. The codes harbored inside my internal hard drive contain my thoughts, my emotions, personality, and all my memories of my life before the destruction of my hometown. In a way, that hard drive is effectively me.

"Anyway, these drones were designed by the good Doctor Kuseno for the sole purpose of retrieving my cranium and any other parts that are still intact."

Their sleek appearance and multitude had been slightly off-putting, but now that Genos explained it, he realized that there were no weapons that they were more for reconnaissance or recovery than for offensive purposes, and he dismissed them.

The teenage cyborg turned to the drones and waved them off. "Return to the laboratory. Tell Dr. Kuseno I am simply in need of a systems reboot and energy core replenishment." The drones blinked and shook up and down and flew off into the sky.

"That was a real mouthful," said Saitama, the veins on his forehead marginally throbbing and his teeth clenched to some degree. "My apologies master."

Saitama waved his hand in dismissal. "It's fine."

"Wait master! Did you defeat the two dragon level beings?" asked Genos, even though he knew the answer to the question. "Oh yea. They turned into some really weird monkeys. They went on about something called blutz waves that are emitted from the moon and how they were able to create their own waves." Normally Saitama wouldn't have given two shits about long-ass explanations, but his gut told him that these two weren't just any normal mysterious beings, or at least normal by earthly standards, and mentally remembered as much as he could, believing the information could be important for later.

This statement surprised Genos. "So your saying that these two warriors were able to go in and out of this transformation at will?"

Saitama nodded. "It also made them a lot stronger, but they lost a ton a speed when they changed. The smaller guy shot a really small white ball into the air, and then they changed into huge apes. The smaller one put up a better fight than the big guy, but neither of them had any power to back up their talk." Saitama sighed. "It was pretty disappointing. Anyway, I managed to knock out the bigger guy with my consecutive normal punches, and I think I broke the other guy's nose.

"I guessed that the orb was responsible for keeping them as apes, so I figured it the orb was gone, they would go back to normal, and I was right. The smaller guy, I think Vegerna was his name, got in a small pod to escape. The bigger guy tried to ask him for help, but he just left him behind. He's lying unconscious over there." Saitama pointed to where Nappa was lying.

"Are you sure it was a wise decision to leave them alive? Both were dragon level threats who effortlessly defeated 3 A class heroes the other warrior."

"Ohh yea that guy was that Speed-O-Sound guy. He's about as powerful you are."

"So why didn't you finish them off like any other mysterious being?"

"Well I mean…" He shrugged his shoulders. "I just wasn't comfortable with killing him. I don't like killing people, and this guy was a decent fighter, so I figured what the hell?"

The Caped Baldy turned his attention back to the other four unconscious fighters. "So what do we do about the other guys who got their asses whooped?"

The cyborg sternly gazed at the four other unconscious fighters. Their wounds ran deep from the fight they were just in, and from what his processors could analyze from the severity of the wounds, it would take them quite some time to recover. If they were lucky, they would be up and running in about a week or two, and worst-case scenario, all four would be out of commission for two months. "I believe the Hero Association will send some scouts to retrieve the unconscious heroes and re-imprison Speed-O-Sound Sonic once again, although if I were the Hero Association, given his uncanny speed and impressive assassin skills, I'm assuming they would put them in a much more secure and fortified cell much deeper underground to ensure his imprisonment."

"Master, what are you wearing?" Saitama took off Nappa's scouter and looked at it in fascination, still fixated on its unique design. "Those two had these things on them. Here take a look." Saitama handed the device to his disciple. "To what purpose did they use this device?"

"I dunno. Although the smaller guy had one too, but it blew up for some reason when he looked at me with it."

"Really?" The device was destroyed when it looked at Master Saitama? That still wasn't enough information to tell him what its purpose was. He would need to discuss with Dr. Kuseno its purpose. "Master, would you accompany me to the lab with Dr. Kuseno?" This was a first for Saitama. He'd always wondered where it was that Genos was repaired every time he was broken, and for his heightened senses and awareness, he'd been pretty stupid not to notice the mini drones before. At least today he would have that question answered. "Sure."

* * *

"Here we are Master." The Demon Cyborg and his master stood at the door of the doctor's laboratory. Some great minds think alike, as the laboratory was hidden deep within the lush, vast forest between the City X and City Y, somewhat similar to Dr. Genus' lab. Within this laboratory contained Dr. Kuseno's most prized works throughout the many years of his work. Dr. Kuseno was widely known throughout the scientific world, and in public, he resided in City Y. He often attended important meetings within the community, but unlike many, Dr. Kuseno preferred his privacy and hid his private laboratory deep underground. Genos knew first hand how powerful and effective his robotics was. They were even more dangerous and powerful than the workings of the two greatest scientists known to man: Child Emperor and Metal Knight.

"Is this really where this guy lives?"

Genos shook his head. "The great doctor lives in a small apartment inside City Y during the weekdays, he spends most of his time working publically, working on his lesser, more menial projects. His weekends are spent in his private workshop, either helping rebuild me or focusing his efforts on his other important projects Let us enter."

From the stonewall popped out a jet-black keyboard. Genos typed a 12-digit code with lightning fast fingers. At first, nothing happened. A few seconds later, the wall gradually opened to the two heroes. "What the…"

"Yes, the Doctor was very thorough in the concealment." Genos nudged the dumbstruck B class hero forward into the tightly concealed lab. The entrance led to a very dimly lit hallway with small light bulbs hanging overhead. At the end of the hallway, a long flight of stairs motioned the two heroes downward.

Robot parts were everywhere. Everything was in a disarray of spare parts, papers, and boxes of take out lunch for the nights when a good night sleep wasn't on his mind. The walls were a dull gray, and the floor was covered with several panels, with some being only a foot or two long, and others being as big as 10 feet. On the doctor's right was a large table with at least a dozen or more computer monitors were running numbers, speedily calculating the exact parameters, sustainability, and other coding required for his projects with several Dr. Kuseno's left was some sort of operating table with at least 8 mechanical arms hovering just a few feet above. "That table is where the doctor installs my upgrades and rebuilds my limbs," said Genos, practically reading Saitama's mind.

The doctor was typing rigorously on his multi-screen desktop that stood to the right of the large operating table. "Didn't he hear us coming in?"

Genos shook his head. "When he's caught up in his work, he has laser like focus. When he first found me, he didn't sleep for three days straight." Saitama smirked. He seemed to be just as determined in his work as Saitama was during his training.

"Dr. Kuseno."

He quickly turned his head, alarmed that someone had intruded his secret laboratory, but he sighed a breath of relief when he saw it was only Genos. "Ah hello Genos. How are you?"

"I am fine doctor. Is the operating table ready for the reboot?"

"Yes I just finished the last code encryption." Dr. Kuseno noticed the odd and ridiculous looking person standing right behind Genos. He quizzically stared at Saitama. "And who might this be?"

"This is my master, Saitama." Dr. Kuseno shot a look of disbelief and awe at Genos. "This is the master?!" Saitama felt an uncomfortable chill rush through his spine as Dr. Kuseno began circling around Saitama like a predator stalking its prey. The smell of take out food and the sensation of him breathing down his neck only made the sensation more awkward. Taking it a step further, he changed levels. "So you are the person who has saved Genos on several occasions and have taken him on as your disciple?"

Saitama could do nothing but nod his head; still feeling like the doctor was trying to kill him with only his eyes, he hesitantly met the eyes of the doctor who was now standing right in front of him.

The tense air completely lightened when Dr. Kuseno let out a warm and hearty laugh. "Oh I must thank you for all the help you've been to Genos." Placing his arm on Saitama's right shoulder, his eyes softened, conveying the deep-seeded appreciation he felt. " If it wasn't for you, Genos would have been done for sure, and I don't know what I would do." He forced himself to blink back tears. "All I can say is that I'm extremely grateful for all you've done for Genos."

"Uhhh… Sure… No problem…" A sweat drop fell down Saitama's face in an anime-style fashion. Realizing Saitama was getting uncomfortable, the doctor cleared his throat and turned his attention back to Genos. "So Genos, shall we begin your systems reboot?"

"Yes, if we may. But before we do, I would like you to take a look at this device." He opened up a compartment on the right side of his waist and showed Dr. Kuseno the device. "What is it?"

"It was some sort of contraption that the two dragon-level beings had on their eyes, like a monocle. One of them self destructed when it was aimed toward master, so it would be best not to turn the device on while Master Saitama is in close range."

"Understood." Dr. Kuseno examined the scouter in the same manner as Saitama did, turning it and staring at it with a child-like fashion. "I'll focus on that later. Right now you need to rest on the table before your energy core can receive any more damage."

"Yes Dr." The teenage cyborg obeyed the doctor and sat on the platform. He restrained himself with the iron cuffs connected to the table as he had done more times than he could count.

"Lets begin then." All 6 monitors on the desktop went bright blue as Dr. Kuseno began typing on his keyboard. Several different folders began popping up on each screen, and the doctor selected the folder titled 'Energy Core Repair'. "Genos, just so you remember, your internal core will be shutdown so there are no altercations in the reboot."

"I remember doctor." When his body was returned to the doctor after his fight with Mosquito Girl, he had to have an internal core repair. He remembered it feeling similar to when he was sleeping, as if he was in a dark, dreamlike state where nothing but a dark void lay ahead. But that wasn't what was on Geno's mind at the moment.

Genos had spent enough time with Saitama to effectively notice all his master's facial expressions and little idiosyncrasies or even his, such as when he the dark lamb chops he liked was a dollar more than the week before, when the television company took off 5 of the movie channels from the monthly package, or the most grievous event was when he left the oven on overnight with a bowl of pasta, ruining the pasta and consequentially, the pot. The face of despair on his master's face was unbearable, and it was something that Genos could never forget. Yet he distinctly remembered the face his master had when the large fighter's beam overcame his incineration cannon, he quickly glimpsed to his master who was already jumping up toward him, and there was something in his eyes that he had rarely if not ever seen from his master. It was exactly the same look that he had seen when his master saw him lying seemingly dead on the ground. The nominal but still present look of distress when Genos was seemingly deceased. But what could cause his master such worry?

The wires and gears in his cranium clicked. His pensive thoughts were interrupted, and he fell into a peaceful sleep. Saitama was standing mouth agape. Doctor Kuseno was typing like a madman, programming the robotic arms standing still on the ceiling for the energy core operation. One of the robotic arms dropped down and scanned Geno's entire body to check for any burn marks or broken limbs.

The blue light turned a bright red, and the beams focused on a large burn mark on his right let, exposing several large wires running through his body. "Wait, I thought you said you were just replacing his energy core."

The doctor let out a hearty laugh, leaving Saitama only more confused. "Ah Saitama, if you know Genos, you'd see he takes great pride in his strength. When you were walking with Genos, didn't you notice he had a slight limp?"

"Oh yeah. Now that you mention it, he was running a little bit slower than usual, and his walking pace was more erratic."

The doctor nodded. "Ever since he became your disciple, he's shown great disappointment whenever he fails an assignment. You should have seen how distraught he was the time when he didn't make it to a time sale. He must have been talking about it for at least an hour."

"Oh yeah! We had sukiyaki that night! Genos really saved dinner with that entrée. Haven't had anything that good in a while." Dr. Kuseno smiled. "That's Genos for you. Even as a boy, he was always striving to be the best he could be. Even when he was equipped with prototype models still in progress, he would always sneak out of the lab and practice using his mechanical parts. A dedicated boy, he is. Let me ask you, how has he been?"

Saitama shrugged his shoulders. "He's fine. He's pretty high up in the Hero Association."

This was no surprise to the doctor. Dr. Kuseno secretly kept track of all mysterious beings eliminated by Genos, and was always checking the Hero Association website to make sure he was aware of Geno's ranking in the Hero Association. "No, I mean his general mood. Has he ever mentioned to you the robot that destroyed his town?"

Saitama's face-hardened to a more serious and somber expression. "Yes, he told me his life story when he asked me to be his disciple."

The doctor sighed. "It was quite a tragedy. When I found him, he was just barely breathing. All of his limbs were fractured, his insides decimated beyond repair. A pool of blood encompassed him, and his eyes were red and swollen from all the tears he shed for his lost family.

"I immediately brought him back to my secret laboratory. It took over a week for me to create the technology I had only conceived of on paper, and another two weeks for me to download the contents of Geno's brain into an internal hard-drive. I didn't sleep for a single minute. Keeping Geno's human body alive was hard enough, but getting the equipment and resources needed was nearly impossible. When I look back, I'm still surprised how I managed to save him in such a short amount of time.

"By the third week, Geno's body was complete. When he woke up, he was in a state of bewilderment and disorientation. I told him my name and how I made his body robotic, and he remained silent. But the heart wrenching pain of losing his family was too much, and he eventually cried once I finished explaining the situation, bawling on the floor like an infant. I comforted him and let him mourn his loss." The doctor closed his eyes and chocked back a sob. "Anyway, after he got acquainted with the situation, he begged for me to make him into a cyborg of justice, and eventually I accepted. I equipped some pyrokinetic weaponry and more offensive armaments, then began to teach him how to use his robotic parts to the best of my abilities. It was challenging at first, but overtime, he learned that his pyro-kinetic abilities were nothing more than an extension of his new, more durable body. For the most part, the early years of his new life were spent in the laboratory, running tests and training him to hone his abilities and call upon them as quickly as a man might blink. On occasion, I would allow him to explore the surrounding area and on some afternoons, let him roam free in the woods, but it was only at the age of 18 that I was confident enough he had mastered his new body and allowed him to fight evil.

"You've helped Genos a lot to calm down the fury boiled within him, to ease the temper of rage against villainous beings and realize not everything is black and white, and that is more important for Genos than any upgraded parts."

Saitama stood silent. He had reached his breaking limit and he was about to bark at the doctor to shorten the story, but the doctor stopped just as he was about to open his mouth. He then proceeded to respond to the doctor's comment, his temper now gone. "I haven't done anything. Genos learned these lessons for himself; I was just there."

"You still guided him to that path, and I'm eternally grateful for that, no matter what you might argue." Saitama smirked at the doctor's persistent attitude of thanking him. That was one thing he and Genos apparently had in common. The two stood for a while and watched as Geno's repairs begun.

* * *

The blue blur of the small spacecraft flew through the empty, star-filled void of space. Housed inside was a disgraced, forsaken, shattered prince. The destined ruler of the most powerful race in existence, who defeated countless hoards of enemy soldiers and annihilated each planets most powerful warriors within an inch of their life, and while it wasn't a particular pride to admit it, one of Lord Frieza's most powerful warriors. The Saiyan Prince had his eyes closed and his head down, his face buried against his knees in complete shame.

He had been absolutely decimated, destroyed, taken out even in his ultimate form: the Oozaru, the most powerful conceivable transformation used by the Saiyan race, next to the legendary super saiyan. He had been defeated by a bald idiot with the worse sense of clothing he had ever seen. Someone like Vegeta, a warrior who held the glory, legacy, and life-blood of the saiyan race, a prince who could topple planets at the age of a toddler, who was destined to become the super saiyan of legends, ousted by a simpleton like that.

But there was one single thing that was overshadowing his defeat more than he cared to admit, a single factor that only made his loss all the more devastating, more heart wrenching, more demoralizing than any other defeat in his life: the bastard's sedate face.

Nearly every second he was fighting with him, he mocked him with his stoic attitude, his expressionless demeanor, and his elementary combat style. He took no defensive stances, displayed no advanced fighting style, and showed absolutely no seriousness in battle. But for him, technique and defensive stances were completely irrelevant, since he had his god-like power that more than compensated for his sub-par fighting knowledge. No, for him, the Prince of Saiyans wasn't even worth the effort of getting out of bed.

And to add insult to this monumental injury, Saitama didn't even finish the job and let him escape, even though Vegeta knew full well he could have done so. He had escaped on a long shot in the hopes that he'd catch him off guard and narrowly leave by the skim of his nose. But when he looked down, he saw Saitama staring right at him, not even exasperating the effort to intercept him.

After 10 minutes in space, the feeling of humiliation and disgrace began to truly sink in, and he wished he had been killed and been spared this torment. At that moment, his pride had completely vanished, along with his fighting spirit, leaving nothing left but a hallow soul, overwhelmed with nothing but shame. And to make matters even worse than they already were, if that was even possible, he had to give a mission report to Frieza. Knowing Zarbon and Dodoria, it would only take about an hour for every soldier on the ship to know of his failure, and only a week for the entire Frieza Force to deem him a laughing stock.

He had about a week until he reached Frieza's ship, so that would give him plenty of time to find the words least likely to make him sound like an incompetent stooge. The Prince pinched the bridge of his nose. This could not be happening.


	7. So it Begins

_Disclaimer: I do not own One Punch Man or Dragon Ball Z. All credit goes to Fugi TV and Akira Toriyama. Please support the official release._

 _Sorry it took so many weeks to upload. Sanya6694, congratulations for being my 100th follower! Hit 10,000 views a few days ago, and I've reached around 11,400. I just want to thank you guys for staying tuned to the story even when it's taken me a few weeks to update. I really appreciate the support. Anyway, enjoy the return of Saitama & Lord Frieza! _

* * *

"Well Genos, your repairs are all finished."

Geno's internal hard drive sparked back to life, and Geno's eyes fluttered open. He lifted his head and saw his master standing cross-armed right beside Dr. Kuseno, still finishing the final upload into the young cyborg's internal processors.

"Good. Master, did you enjoy yourself?"

Saitama shrugged his shoulders. "The lab looks pretty cool, and I got to eat a few leftover fortune cookies from the doctor's Chinese takeout."

"Very good to hear master."

"You really need to be more careful Genos." Dr. Kuseno barged into the conversation, rather dismayed. "I've often let you off the hook for your injuries, but today was the worst I've ever seen. Your energy core was already consuming your reserved power, barely operational, with several cracks breaking the outer frame. Had you arrived a few minutes later, the damage to your core could have been irreversible!"

Genos bowed his head in shame. "I am sorry doctor. I will attempt to be more careful in battle." The doctor stared at Genos, then ran his hands through his hair. "What am I going to do with you?"

"So are we all good here?" asked Saitama, more than ready to leave.

"Yes master. We can head to the supermarket and prepare for dinner."

"Actually, I think I have a better idea." The doctor walked over to his desk, which was a disarray of papers and unfinished project plans. After about 20 seconds of searching through the horde of mess, he finally found a small piece of paper and what appeared to be a menu to which he gave to Saitama. "There's the address to the Chinese restaurant I always order takeout from. I'll place in a phone call and order whatever you heart desires."

Saitama stared with wide eyes at the doctor, then at the piece of paper, then back at the doctor. "I recognize the address. This is my favorite restaurant. I've only been there twice, once on my 16th birthday, and the other 4 years ago. They've been the best dinners of my life. Are you… Are you sure about this?"

Dr. Kuseno waved his hands in dismissal. "It's fine. Enjoy yourself with a nice restaurant dinner. Order anything you would like."

Both the doctor and Genos were taken aback when Saitama began to jump in the air and pumped his fist with energy Genos rarely saw from him. Dr. Kuseno was even more surprised when Saitama grabbed his hand and clasped it with both of his hands. "OH THANK YOU SO MUCH DOCTOR! IT'S BEEN YEARS SINCE I COULD GO GET FOOD LIKE THIS, MUCH LESS WITHOUT ME HAVING TO PAY! I REALLY APPRECIATE THIS!"

An anime-style sweat drop fell down Dr. Kuseno's face. "Uhhh… You're very welcome." Unsure of how to respond, he simply returned the handshake.

Saitama then opened the menu and began to search through the appetizers, entrees, and beverages, anything that looked appealing to him. "I think some chow main would be nice. But those spring rolls do look pretty tasty. Oh, but that Kung Pao chicken is making my mouth water just thinking about it!" As Saitama continued to voraciously take in all the options he could, Dr. Kuseno slowly trudged over to Genos. "Is he often like this?"

Genos shook his head. "He has a rather low income, so delicacies such as this are a rare treat that he takes with open arms."

"I see..." Dr. Kuseno nodded. "This man is truly a rare hero."

Genos craned his head to Dr. Kuseno. "Yes indeed."

* * *

"Man this is such bullcrap!" Metal Bat and Child Emperor had just been called by the Hero Association to rescue the 3 A class heroes that had just been sent to deal with some new dragon level threat, and literally RIGHT before he could show his cat the new toy he'd bought him at a pet store.

"Relax Metal Bat," said Child Emperor.

"Hey you relax! I thought that when I was comin here, I'd at least get the courtesy of getting a good fight out of it, but all I find are 3 A-class bums, some ninjutsu weirdo, and a bald guy passed out cold! FUCK!" Metal Bat slammed the ground with his indestructible bat, shaking the terrain below him and creating a tiny crater in the process.

Child Emperor pinched the bridge of his nose. "Just… Try and entertain yourself." Metal Bat stared at Child Emperor with cold eyes, then trudged off with a huff.

"There doesn't appear to be any remaining threats. Although…" The 10-year-old hero walked over to the passed out bald man with his mechanical tentacle arms. Could this man have been the mysterious being that caused all this damage? But that didn't make any sense. He'd fought several mysterious beings since he'd quit being Metal Knight's assistant, but he'd never seen a mysterious being so human in appearance yet was able to take out 3 A-Class heroes. Just what the hell was he?

* * *

Miles away, from the original crash site of the saiyan pods, another strange vessel shot out of the sky and landed on the ground with a thud. The unknown craft suddenly shot open, revealing one of Metal Knight's reconnaissance drones. He had working in his lab, still attempting to replicate the structural material from the extraterrestrial spacecraft to incorporate in his missiles, when his monitors suddenly blared to life. He was shocked when it revealed 2 small objects approaching Earth's surface. From what his data processors told him, the objects were much too small to be meteors like the dragon-level meteorite, yet they were going at nearly 5 times the speed of said meteorite, possibly even faster.

But the sole factor that confirmed it's alien origin was that the unidentified objects began to slow down once it reached the troposphere. It was then he knew he had to go to the crash site. The knowledge that some sort of object could go at this unparalleled speed and it could possibly be a space pod of some sorts made him ecstatic.

But as if it couldn't get any more surprising, the Hero Association announced that City C had been utterly decimated by some unknown Mysterious Beings. It was the exact location where his data processors had calculated the unknown objects would land.

Once he arrived at the scene, he was in awe at the sheer magnitude of the destruction. It was rather uncommon to see beings capable of such devastation.

"Had I been in charge of creating the city, the damage would have been nonexistent. A shame, really…" Bofoi surveyed the area to see if he could find anything in this barren crater. "No apparent signs of life…"

All of a sudden, his sensors picked up a small object at the center of this wide abyss. Bofoi commanded the sentry to sprint to the bottom of the crevice. He gasped.

At the bottom of this gargantuan hole was a white spherical space pod, appearing no more than 5 feet in diameter. It had a very sleek design, with a small, circular red window being the only other noticeable exterior feature. He found it hard to believe that such a small and unimpressive looking spacecraft could be capable of such flight.

He peered through the red window. On the inside of this spacecraft was a single seat outfitted with a rectangular control pad hinged to the pod's hatch. Surrounding it's interior was a sort of white cushioning.

This was a rare specimen indeed. While yes, the alien shipwreck certainly was a valuable and intrinsic specimen; this was the first piece of alien technology left completely unscathed. If he could somehow replicate the technology that made this craft go at such high velocity, he could incorporate that technology into his own, and he would create the most powerful weapons mankind had ever seen.

Bofoi smiled. "Alright. I must make sure no soul interferes with this research."

The grey haired scientist picked up his telephone. "Randall!"

Randall Valentine, a young 20 year old man with jet black hair and small peach fuzz, was drinking his morning coffee and reading his weekly playboy in his office, when his telephone suddenly blared at him, nearly knocking him out of his chair.

He scrambled from his chair and rapidly picked up the phone. "Yes sir!"

"Call the Hero Association! Explicitly tell them to make sure the media stay away from my laboratory! I can't stand any more news reporters crowding at the door of my laboratory!"

"Of course sir!"

"Get to it!" Randall hung up the phone. He ran his hands through his hair. When he signed up to be the secretary of the world famous scientific hero Metal Knight, he'd expected to see awesome robots, chicks swarming him knowing he was connected to an S-class hero, and all the respect he could ever want. He wished he could go back in time and slap himself in the face for thinking it would be a good idea.

Just before he was about to call the Hero Association, his mind turned back to the playboy he was reading. A perverse thought crossed his mind. "Wonder if Blizzard of Hell could pose in one of these…" That would really make a night to remember.

* * *

"That was… delicious." Saitama and Genos had just finished dining on their gourmet Chinese cuisine. Saitama would have to remember to thank Dr. Kuseno again for buying dinner for him. The bill had been almost 15,000 yen. Not only that, but he had enough leftovers to last for the entire week. It was like a dream come true.

"Was it to your liking master?"

"It was awesome. That Kung Pao Chicken set my mouth on fire, but in a better way then I thought." Saitama grabbed his cup and took a sip of his Fanta. "And if it couldn't get any better, that restaurant was chained with Coca Cola, so I got me a nice cold Fanta. I mean, Pepsi products aren't terrible, but I've always been a Coke kinda guy."

Genos smiled. "I'm glad to see you enjoyed your night."

"Yo Genos, can you hand me some of that soy sauce?" Genos nodded and handed him a soy sauce packet. The hero ripped open the packet, and then poured all of the soy sauce straight into his mouth. "WOAH! That's a rush! Took me a few years to do that without gagging. I once threw up after eating 5 packets in a row! Those were the days…"

Saitama reclined in his seat, staring at the ceiling with a smile on his face. This had been a good day indeed. "Totally worth getting up in the morning."

* * *

The Attack Ball soared through the void of space. The stars were simply lit in the cold reach of space, and inside the Attac Ball, it was only more bleak and lifeless. One week had passed since Vegeta had left Earth, and he was still having trouble finding out how he wouldn't sound like an idiot. He'd had to deal with the reek of sweat and his own blood inside his capsule for hours on end. He would have gone into hyper sleep, but he found that the face of that baldheaded bastard plagued his dreams every day. The worst part was that he didn't even get a power boost from his defeat. A saiyan only became stronger when put in a near death state, but all he'd done is got punched in the face, which wasn't nearly enough physical damage to receive a power boost. Even better, he hadn't washed himself, so dried blood was smeared all over his face.

"Shit…" Vegeta had set the coordinates of his ship to find Frieza's ship, and his control board began go off the fritz. He looked up, and realized he was only a few thousand kilometers away from Frieza Planet 419. Frieza must have stopped to refuel his ship, and the memory of Boro's defeat brought him back to this backwater planet.

Vegeta stiffed up. He knew from the violent turbulence that he was already entering the planet's atmosphere. He almost wretched, but doing so in such a confined space would make this even worse than it already was, if that was even possible.

"500 meters until Frieza's ship," voiced his control board. The attack ball began to nominally slow down as it reached the boarding deck. He crouched up from his slumped position to look down, and he grimaced. Appule and Cui were waiting at the boarding deck. Both of them had stupid smirks on their faces and their arms were crossed. They must have already figured out that something went wrong on the mission from there being only one pod.

"Fuck… FUCK!" Vegeta slammed his armrests. Those slimy bastards were going to eat this up. The space pod hurtled toward the the port and bounced safely on the cushioned landing sights designed to absorb the shock from the pod's impact. The attack ball's hatch door sprung open, revealing to Appule and Cui a Saiyan Prince with a bloody face and a space pod that smelled like it had been drenched in sweat.

"Oh Vegeta! You smell like your mother after taking 10 guys at the same time! Sounds like your last Saturday night!"

"Uh-oh Cui! You don't want to upset the big bad saiyan prince! He might transform and start flinging his shit at you!" Both soldiers laughed their heads off.

Vegeta smirked. "At least my mother and I got some. The only chance you two'd ever get laid is if you crawl up a chicken's ass and waited."

The two alien soldiers bared their teeth. "Why you little-"

"That's enough out of you three!" All three of their eyes widened. Appule and Cui swiftly turned around, and shuddered when they saw Frieza perched on his hover chair, with his two lackeys standing by his side, smiling at the palpable terror in their eyes.

All three immediately bent to their knees and placed their fist over their heart. "Our apologies Lord Frieza!"

"Save that energy for when I'm bored. Some of your derogatory comments were mildly entertaining." Frieza began to move his eyes around, as if looking for the piece missing in the picture. "Vegeta, where is that nefarious oaf Nappa? I pray that he wasn't delayed in his return. I should hope your mission went along swimmingly."

Vegeta hunched his shoulders at Frieza's question. As much as Vegeta wanted to rip Frieza's vocal cords so he could permanently silence his condescending voice, Vegeta knew he couldn't lay so much as a finger on him. He took a deep breath, and prepared for the worst. "The mission did not go as planned…"

Dodoria snickered. "Judging by the blood on his face, I'd say the "not as planned" part means the whole thing went south." The Saiyan Prince shot a look of pure contempt at Dodoria, but continued to keep his mouth shut.

Frieza raised his eyebrow. "Is what Dodoria says possibly correct?"

"Uhhhh…" Vegeta cleared his throat. "Nappa was… defeated and detained by one of the warriors on Planet Earth-"

"Nappa defeated?!" said Frieza, rather surprised and nominally concerned that Nappa was beaten. Not that he cared about him. Personally, he would have preferred Raditz over Nappa any day, but Nappa was still a rather powerful member of the Frieza Force in comparison to his foot soldiers, and without powerful generals or soldiers at his disposal, conquering planets would become much more arduous. "How was he disposed of and who disposed him?!"

"A fighter on planet Earth… A being that wore ludicrous clothing and had a bald head, even though he couldn't have been more than 30 years old… The scouter read he had a power level of…"

"Of what?!" Frieza jumped out of his hover chair and grabbed Vegeta's collar. "Stop muttering vague nonsense and use your brain, however small it may be. ANSWER THE QUESTION!"

Vegeta gulped. "It was… It was -"

Everyone gasped.

"There's no way!"

"That's impossible! Nobody could be that powerful!"

"Your scouter must have been malfunctioning!" Attaining such a power was unfeasible, unthinkable, and impossible. At least that's what Frieza's henchmen were thinking. All of them stared at Frieza, praying he take this news calmly.

Frieza froze. It took him a moment to absorb what he'd just been told. A being of such power other than him? It couldn't be true. Yet what reason did Prince Vegeta have to lie? He thought he was finished with warriors of legend threatening his empire. He truthfully believed he could take a refreshing sigh of relief and relax. Now suddenly, a random warrior shows up on a miserable looking mud ball, kills Boros, thrashes the last remaining saiyans to a pulp, and has a power level of -?

The Space Emperor snarled, and released a purple energy wave that just narrowly missed Vegeta neck and singed the top of his hair. Vegeta clenched his teeth when he saw the top of his hair fall on the ground.

Zarbon was the first to speak. "Lord Frieza, you can't seriously believe the tall tales of a simian fool like this?!"

"Yes my Lord! This can't possibly be true!"

Frieza took Zarbon and Dodoria's words into consideration. He took a deep breath, and exhaled through his nose. "Whether or not this reading was correct, the evidence is standing before us: Whoever this fighter was, he was powerful to defeat Prince Vegeta and Nappa. Vegeta, did you undergo your filthy ape transformation in battle?"

Vegeta craned his head up to Lord Frieza. Through gritted teeth, he spoke the words he loathed hearing. "Yes. Both Nappa and I transformed into Great Apes, and both of us were defeated in an instant."

"Mm hmm…" Frieza began stroking his imaginary beard. "I know firsthand of the significant power increase that occurs when saiyans undergo this transformation. Whoever this fighter is, I was clearly wrong for sending two dirt-covered lackeys alone to combat him. I must take more drastic measures…"

Both Zarbon and Dodoria looked at each other, unsure of what Frieza was talking about. "What exactly do you mean, my Lord?"

Frieza walked to the edge of the platform, staring out into the empty void of space. "My empire has no boundaries. My destiny is to reign supreme over every dominion in the universe and even beyond, and no planet will escape my grasp. I cannot let this warrior get away with this scotch-free. No one humiliates the name of the Galactic Frieza Army without my say in it. Everyone knows and will know my name and tremble in terror when they see even a glimpse of my power. And that means everyone.

"I will confront this warrior myself. If he's smart enough, he will come to realize the futility of resistance and bow to my whim, granting me another extremely useful warrior to add to my arsenal of fighters."

Frieza twisted his lips. "But if he is foolish, then he will have to grasp the consequences of his shortsighted decision and tomfoolery, and I will disillusion him of his feeling of superiority. His bold, courageous façade will crumble away, replaced by the trepidation and realization of how helpless he truly is. At that moment, he will truly come to terms with the concept of fear, all the while beginning his slow journey to the pits of hell!" Frieza let out his malignant laugh, which rang out through the entire compound.

"Vegeta, I must inquire: besides the fighter who you were defeated by, were there any other substantially adequate warriors you encountered?"

"Many of the planet's "heroes" as they called themselves, could barely hold their own against the saibamen. The only exceptions were a sneaky ninja who used toys to try and defeat us, and a blonde young man with the bearings of a cybernetic robot who was able to match Nappa's ultimate attack."

"I see…" Frieza dwelled on this. More acceptable candidates to pledge into his army? A treat he always embraced happily. "Very well. Zarbon, Dodoria."

Both henchmen straightened themselves. "Yes My Lord!

"Prepare my ship for departure. I will meet this warrior myself."

"Of course."

"Oh, and Cui!"

"Yes Sir!"

"Contact Frieza Planet 245. Tell them to send me the most advanced scouter their scientists have created and to have them sent to my ship at once. Have the delivery be handled by the Ginyu Force themselves."

Everyone gasped. "The Ginyu Force?!"

"Uhh… My lord. Surely the situation has not become so dire that we require their assistance," said Zarbon. "The testimony of a battered Saiyan Prince who lost his comrade and has a face filled with blood, babbling on about a warrior with a power level of -, surely isn't the kind of conundrum that would require their attention!"

The Space Emperor leaned back and looked up to the sky. "Call it personal intuition, but I believe their services would be most useful to us at the moment. It's been quite some time since they've had an entertaining field mission. Surely this planet's inhabitants will make sporting game. And besides, I'm feeling in a rather jovial mood, even with this unfortunate news. Dodoria, Zarbon, and Vegeta will come to Earth as well, along with 200 henchmen."

Both men bowed and scurried off to obey their master's orders. "And as for you!"

Frieza pointed his finger at Vegeta, and for a second, Vegeta thought his life might end at that moment. "Be fortunate that I do not cut off your tail right now for your contemptible results on your mission! Now go to the healing chamber before your scent makes me vomit. We leave in 5 hours."

Vegeta bowed, and quickly begin to pace away. Dodoria smirked as Vegeta walked away. "Nice one, your majesty." Vegeta paused in his place and growled at him. But he knew he was in no position to start a fight, and walked out without saying another word.

Frieza walked back to his hover chair and resumed staring out into the cosmos, and smiled maliciously once again. "The game is set, the die is cast, and my besiege will begin."

* * *

 _And here is the beginning of Frieza's raid on Planet Earth. Hope you like this chapter. And to answer the question regarding if his henchmen know of Frieza's true power, I don't believe they do because on Planet Namek, Vegeta challenged Frieza, believing his power level to be sufficient enough to defeat him, meaning nobody really know the numerical power level of Frieza's further forms. I believe they know of his ability to transform, but they just don't know how powerful he becomes when he transforms. Until next time! And to all the TFS fans who reviewed, glad you noticed my references :D_


	8. A Wrong Turn Down Memory Lane

_Disclaimer: I own nothing._

 _WARNING!: Some spoilers for the webcomic will be revealed, but they aren't what you would expect..._

 _All out in the open. Didn't expect an update so quick, did you? Well, here it is, just 5 days after my last update, ripe and ready to read. I just want to thank every one of my reviewers. I really enjoy reading your thoughtful and insightful comments. They really brighten my day. Anyway, enjoy chapter 8!_

* * *

Millions of miles away, The Caped Baldy and Demon Cyborg were enjoying a good night sleep, and the crack of sunlight was entering through Saitama's apartment windows.

"Mmmm… I'd like some syrup with my toast please. And make it snappy." Saitama was muttering to himself in his sleep, enjoying his abnormal dream, when something loud and annoying came knocking at his doorstep.

"Is this the residence of Demon Cyborg? I need to speak with you immediately!"

Saitama groggily rubbed his eyes, extremely upset that his beauty sleep was being interrupted like this. He opened the door and saw a man with a suit, looking out of breath.

Saitama frowned, unpleased with this random stranger at his door. "Dude, if you want to sell insurance, I don't have the money for it, so just skedaddle."

The man furrowed his brows. "Hey, I know you… You're the Caped Baldy! What are you doing in Demon Cyborgs apartment?! If you did anything to him, I swear I'll tell President Agoni and have you kicked out of the Hero Ass-"

"Leave my master alone." In less than a second, Genos was standing in between Saitama and this unknown intruder, with anger flaring through his eyes. "State your purpose."

"My deepest apologies Demon Cyborg! I thought the Caped Baldy was threatening you. Anyway, I've been sent by Minister Sitch and President Agoni to summon all S-class heroes for another meeting. Both seemed rather serious about this meeting."

"Another meeting? How peculiar… Master, like before, you should come as well."

"This is a meeting for S-class heroes only. I doubt that your company is needed or wanted by the-" His voice faltered when he saw Geno's eyes darken, his expression much more grave and threatening. He stammered for several seconds before speaking again. "But of course, any guest of Demon Cyborg will surely be welcome to attend such a meeting. It starts in 30 minutes."

The man then quickly scurried off like a field mouse, scared shitless of what the Demon Cyborg could do to him.

Genos turned to his master. "So shall we prepare to go, master?"

Saitama waved his hands in dismissal."Nice offer, but I think I'll pass. It's too early for me to listen to some boring crap, and if I go now, my sleep schedule is gonna be all messed up. I'll get a few more hours of shuteye. You go without me." Saitama slowly walked over and plopped himself straight onto his blankets.

Genos propped against the wall, concerned about what he had just heard. Whatever threat was coming, he had a feeling it would be a threat that of which humanity has never seen, and he was sure without a doubt that they would need Master Saitama to fight it.

* * *

Genos and some of the other S-class heroes were each patiently waiting, with some of them noting the behaviors of the other S-class heroes who weren't as patient.

"How come we have to come to this boring place again?" said an irritated Tatsumaki. "We were already gathered a few weeks ago, why do we have to come back here again?"

"Just calm yourself Tornado," said Bang. She glared at him, then simply huffed like the spoiled, inconsiderate bitch she was.

Finally, Metal Bat and Metal Knight, or at least one of Metal Knight's drones, entered the room. "Sorry I'm late everybody. I had to drop my sister off at her piano lesson."

"Unfortunately for me, I was forced to accommodate my busy schedule to attend this tedious meeting."

"Well unlike us, you don't have to haul your ass hundreds of miles here and can send one of your helper droids to go for you," said a frustrated Metal Bat.

"I'm sorry. You're a tad too annoying for me to bear with this morning."

Metal Bat jumped up from his seat. "Oh yea? I dare you to tell me that face-to-face, then we'll see if you have the balls to say that again!"

"Stop!" Everyone turned their heads and saw President Agoni and Minister Sitch, both of them looking tired and both appearing very distressed. "Now is not the time for such brash actions! We have much bigger problems than your petty squabbles!"

"But-"

"STAND! Down!" yelled Sitch, absolutely unwilling to hear more nonsensical argumentative garbage from any other heroes.

He tightened the grip on his bat, but grudgingly did what he was told and sat down. "So where the hell is Blast? Why isn't he here?"

Sitch sighed and put his fingers to his temple. "Unfortunately, we were unable to locate him, so he will not be joining us today. Again. Now, lets get down to the task at hand."

"Yesterday morning, one of our staff members informed us of a secret letter hidden in the closet of Madame Shibabawa."

Some of the more ill mannered heroes groaned. "This again?"

"We came here at 7:30 in the morning just so we could here this again?

"I wish. This was much, much worse. The letter was addressed to both me and President Agoni at that exact date, at the exact time." The heroes looked at each other in confusion and concern. "What's even more alerting is that it even lists every hero present at this moment at the exact date and time." Everyone gasped. How could that be?

Sitch typed a few codes onto the monitor, and up came a holographic image of the letter. "It appears that this letter was a continuation of her last words she said just before her death. The letter goes like this:

* * *

 _President Agoni and Minister Sitch, when you hear of this message, it will be at 3:32 in the afternoon, and it will be conveyed by a young man named Baxter Johnson with blonde hair._

 _To President Agoni, Minister Sitch, the S-Class heroes Tornado of Terror, Silver Fang, Atomic Samurai, Child Emperor, Metal Knight, King, Zombieman, Drive Knight, Pig God, Superalloy Darkshine, Watchdog Man, Flashy Flash, Demon Cyborg, Tanktop Master, Metal Bat, and Puri-Puri-Prisoner. Metal Bat & Metal Knight will be the last to arrive, in that order. You will receive this message at 7:43 AM on September 27, 2015. Heed this warning: _

_The Earth is in terrible danger_

 _A simian's downfall will ripple through space_

 _To a demon of unspeakable terror_

 _The Devil of Frost shall reap and sow_

 _Seeds of malevolent destruction_

 _T_ _he poison of vainglory, a two-sided coin_

 _To lead the trail of unity or division_

 _The demon's wrath quelled through pain, and_

 _The desolate wastelands returned to life_

* * *

Everyone remained in an awe-stricken silence. This was so complicated, so convoluted, and each of them was in a conundrum for what it could mean.

"Wait, doesn't simian mean monkey? How the hell can a monkey from outer space have a downfall?" said an unconvinced Tatsumaki.

"Our data analysts have been attempting to match up these phrases and see if there was any correlation, but so far we've turned up no successful results," replied Sitch.

"If some of you are not aware, two mysterious beings appeared yesterday in an unknown extraterrestrial spacecraft. At exactly 2:34 PM yesterday, these two pods touched Earth's surface, and whatever creature was in there was powerful enough to level City C from the face of the Earth.

"At 3:14 PM, one of the space pods left Earth with one of the mysterious beings, yet for some reason, the other remained on Earth. We're currently unsure of why this was the case, but Metal Knight has taken possession of the remaining spacecraft. We're still unclear as to who defeated these two dragon-level threats or the details of their defeat, as the 3 A-class heroes are still in an unconscious state. Not only that, but we've deduced that one of the mysterious beings and a dangerous assassin who had escaped custody were 2 of the 5 people remaining at the scene."

"What was the name of the dangerous assassin?" Everyone turned in surprise when they realized that Flashy Flash was asked the question. For a stern, often uninterested S-class hero such as himself, it was rare for him to ever speak without a tone of rudeness in his voice.

"I believe he calls himself Speed-O-Sound Sonic. Why does it matter to you?"

Flashy Flash sighed in exasperation. "No reason you should concern yourselves with," he said with aggression, meaning he was back to his old self.

An uncomfortable mood swept the table. None of them had ever seen him raise his voice. Ever.

"Well… Uh, anyway, if any of you have any information about these mysterious beings, anything would be greatly appreciate-"

"I was the one who defeated them," said Genos. While on the outside he kept his expressionless façade, the intense debate was broiling within him. More than anything, Genos would have loved to say that Master Saitama had been the one to eliminate the threat. But he knew very well that many people did not hold Saitama in high regards, claiming him to be a conniving, credit-stealing con artist. He knew that there would be a day everyone would see the truly noble man Saitama was, but for now, he would respect master Saitama's wishes and make him anonymous.

"Demon Cyborg? You were the one who defeated those two?"

Genos sighed. "Yes."

"Very good! The rest of you may leave. Remember to stay vigilant and if you find out any strange activity, please report to either myself of the Hero Association as soon as possible. Demon Cyborg, we will call you in a few hours to ask for details. In the mean time, I have some more... personal business to attend to. Dismissed."

The S-class heroes immediately jumped from their seats as soon as Sitch finished talking. Getting another hour or two of sleep was on most of their minds at that moment in time. Yet as Genos was about to exit the door, he saw a message through his optical sensor, and Genos stepped back.

 _"Genos. We need to talk. Now. -Dr. Kuseno_

Genos placed his palm to his forehead. What was the problem now?

* * *

Genos scurried down the steps do Dr. Kuseno's basement. "Dr. Kuseno! I came as soon as I saw your message. What is the urgent issue?"

Dr. Kuseno was pacing back and forth through his laboratory. His usually calm complex was now replaced with a jittery, disordered sack of flesh. He was wringing his hands, and his eyes now had several more lines etched into his skin. "This is unbelievable… I don't know how this can be… How can this technology exist?!"

"DOCTOR!" Genos sped to Dr. Kuseno. "You need to calm down!" The young cyborg planted both of his hands on the doctor's shoulders and stared right into the fear-ridden doctors eyes. "Dr. Kuseno. Take a deep breath, and calmly explain to me what it is you discovered."

The doctor did as Genos told him, closing his eyes as he inhaled and exhaled. "You're right Genos. I apologize, but it's just that I've discovered some very troubling news about the scouter you gave me. Come."

The doctor motioned Genos over to his worktable. Genos observed in curiosity at the several different wires connected to the scouter, which all looped to several computer monitors that were performing some calculations that Genos could vaguely recognize.

"Whatever sort of technology was used to create this scouter, it's unlike anything I've ever seen before. After you left, I turned it on to begin my analysis, and I was unable to read the language on the device. It took me some time, but I was able to replicate the numerical system and language of the scouter and download it onto my hard drive. The amount of information and programing coded into the device was equal to 5 terabytes of storage.

"Such a large amount of storage in such a small device on it's own is unprecedented. It took me almost 4 hours for me to download the entirety of the language text into my data system and replace it with our English language. It will still take a few days for me to translate the language into English, if that's even possible.

"As you know, I integrated sensors into your retinal system to detect high energy levels, but those measurements are very imprecise and can only read energy levels as high or low. But this scouter is something which I've never seen before."

"I took your advice and decided against using it on your master, so I scouted for the energy levels of the closest city to my lab, and I was shocked; not only was the scouter able to give a concrete reading of every different citizen, but it was able to estimate the exact distance between my laboratory and the city."

Genos picked up the scouter and stared at it in awe.

"Whoever had the capability of creating such an advanced sensory device has knowledge that is years, maybe even decades ahead of our current technology."

But Genos had stopped listening to the doctor about 10 seconds ago. A single overriding thought was going through his brain. If this device was as powerful as Dr. Kuseno said it was, then could he perhaps…

"Doctor, do you think that you could perhaps integrate this scouter into my sensory system?" The good doctor dwelled on this for a moment. If he could figure out how to duplicate the technology, it could be theoretically possible. But... "Genos, this technology is very advanced, far too advanced to replicate in a single night. It would take me days, maybe even weeks for me to replicate this kind of technology. Genos, I have to know something."

Dr. Kuseno turned to Genos, and while he gave no palpable signs of anger, Genos could feel a kind of serious chill radiating off of the doctor, and he slightly tensed. "Was there any other machinery or equipment that the mysterious beings brought with them? Where is the spacecraft that they used to travel to Earth?"

Genos ran his hand through his hair. "At the moment, one of the space pods is in the custody of Metal Knight, an S-class Rank 6 member of the Hero Association."

Dr. Kuseno looked at Genos as if he had misheard him. "Do you mean Bofoi?" said Dr. Kuseno with a tone that almost sounded like worry.

Genos tilted his head, somewhat baffled that the doctor sounded concerned when he spoke. "Uh, yes doctor. How did you know his real name, and why do you sound so uneasy about it?" He figured that he might be familiar with his hero name, but it was much less common for people to know his real name or any high ranking hero's real name for the matter, so how did the doctor know?

"Oh no reason at all." The doctor stretched his arms out palms out as he chuckled nervously. "I just know about him due to his high status in the Hero Association and his achievements in the scientific community."

Although his explanation sounded reasonable enough, something didn't sit right with the way Dr. Kuseno had sounded just now. It struck Genos as if he was trying to cover up something he knew about Bofoi. Was there some sort of connection between him and the S-class hero he wasn't telling him?

"Doctor, have you met Bof-" His pocket suddenly began ringing. "Who could this be?" He grabbed his phone and saw that the caller id was from the Hero Association. "Yes, what is the matter?"

"Demon Cyborg. The Hero Association is ready to question you about the mysterious beings."

"Very well. Tell Minister Sitch I will arrive in 20 minutes." He hung up the phone without saying another word. "I must go now Doctor. Forgive my short visit, but I must answer some questions for the Hero Association."

The doctor waved his hand in dismissal. He more than anyone knew that Geno's work was very important, and he'd already told him everything he needed to tell "You're fine Genos. Just make sure to be careful. Something tells me that something big is about to happen." The Demon Cyborg somberly nodded. "Yes. Farewell doctor."

The good doctor watched as Genos sprinted out of his laboratory. "That child is still as rambunctious as ever… " The old man chuckled. "Some things never change." He then walked to an unidentified room. He clicked on the keypad next to the door, and the door quickly whooshed open, revealing a bathroom. Dr. Kuseno felt like his clothes were glued to his body, and he thought that hot water would help wake him up. Besides, he had somewhere important to go, and he wouldn't smell like a dead skunk in front of HIM. "This is JUST great…"

* * *

"This is JUST great." The saiyan prince was gently floating in the healing ooze, but he knew that one thousand years in this liquid wouldn't heal his broken pride, or grow his trimmed hair. That glorified lizard had cut off about the top 2 inches of hair. The worst part was he couldn't even grow it back because a saiyan's hair stopped growing as soon as they reached adolescence. God, he'd had some bad hair days when he was a kid, that's for sure…

* * *

" _Damn it Damn it DAMN IT!" The young Prince Vegeta was losing his mind, pacing around his training room and trying to figure out what he would do. It had been a regular training day, and he was relentlessly plowing through dozens of saibamen like the paper-thin trolls they were, when one of them caught him off guard and scorched the right side of his hair._

 _Any other day, he would have been pissed, but it would have been fixable over time, but today was his coronation into his title as Prince Vegeta. He was only 4 years old, about to become 5, and already such a prestigious honor was being held for him. Everyone would deem him a laughingstock if he appeared at the ceremony with hair like this. It wasn't like there was a barber around to suddenly fix his problem. Hell, over half of the Frieza Force was fucking bald! "I am so screwed…"_

" _Prince Vegeta! Your ceremony starts in 45 minutes!" General Nappa was patiently sitting next to the door to Prince Vegeta's personal training room, but Vegeta's babbling piqued his interest. He should have been out of his room 10 minutes ago, so why was he still inside the training room? "Are you alright Prince Vegeta?"_

" _MIND YOUR OWN FUCKING BUSINESS NAPPA! I'M FINE!" Nappa narrowed his eyes. All right, that did it. "Vegeta, just what the hell is taking you sooooooohhh. Whoa." If his eyes were working right, he was looking at Prince Vegeta with a face as ripe as a tomato, and his hair singed on his right side. "What happened to you?"_

 _Vegeta slapped his palms to his forehead and groaned. God, this was humiliating beyond words. "One of the saibamen got a lucky shot at me and it clipped my hair! Nappa, what the fuck am I gonna do?"_

" _Alright Prince just calm down…"_

" _CALM DOWN?! I HAVE 40 MINUTES UNTIL I HAVE TO SHOW MYSELF IN FRONT OF THE ENTIRE SAIYAN RACE, AND YOU WANT ME TO CALM DOWN?!" Vegeta slammed the wall to vent his anger, causing the entire room to shake. General Nappa sighed in exasperation. If King Vegeta saw his son looking like this, he would surely be blamed for this. What could he do? "Wait…"_

 _Prince Vegeta was snapped out of his paranoid and frantic mood when he felt General Nappa grab his arm. "Nappa, what the hell are you doing?!" Vegeta tried to break free and stamped his feet into the ground to halt Nappa's movement, but his resistance was pointless. While he was relatively powerful, there was still a difference of at least 1,000 between Nappa's power and his own, maybe even more. After flying rapidly down the hallway for about 20 seconds, where thank Kami no soldier was there to see him, they stopped at a room where Vegeta had never entered before._

 _As soon as they entered the room, Nappa locked the door. He then grabbed his scouter and pointed it at Vegeta. When he heard a faint clicking sound come from the scouter, he froze in his place. "Nappa, what did you…"_

" _It's just a precaution, just to make sure you don't tell a living soul what I'm about to tell you…"_

" _Tell what?" Nappa groaned. Was he really going to do this? He pinched the bridge of his nose and closed his eyes to ease the frustration he was feeling at that moment. "When I was in my twenties, I was… I was…" Nappa opened his eyes to see Vegeta tapping his foot, impatiently waiting for an answer._

" _I WAS A BARBER, ALRIGHT?!" For a second, the room stayed quiet. Nappa covered his eyes with his right hand so he wouldn't see Vegeta's smug face. About 5 seconds passed, and still, nothing. Huh. Maybe Prince Vegeta wasn't so…_

 _And as if on cue, a chorus of uncontrollable laughter came from Vegeta. General Nappa, one of the most powerful saiyan generals and his father's top adviser was a fucking barber? He knew that barbers existed, but such a menial position was an occupation for the low-class saiyans, and there were only rare occasions in which he or any other saiyan ever even needed something as arbitrary as a haircut. The irony and lunacy of General Nappa having such a random and ridiculous occupation was too much for the Prince to take in, and he fell on the floor in an uncontrollable laughing fit. His eyes were actually starting to water from the sheer hilarity._

 _The Saiyan General's embarrassment only grew watching Vegeta rolling on the floor and hearing his incessant laughing. After about 30 seconds, his annoying laugher started to wane and he started to take deep breaths. "So uh, why uh did you become a barber?" said Vegeta through giddy giggling._

 _He never thought that he'd be regaling this story to an actual person, but he guessed since Prince Vegeta already knew, he might as well tell him everything. Nappa sat on his bed and rested his hands on his lap. "Back in the day, it wasn't easy living on a foot soldiers salary. Hell, there were nights where I went hungry because I didn't have the money to pay for dinner. Anyway, I had to find a way to earn some cash until I moved up in the ranks and could afford a better place. So one day, while I was scourging through the streets and stores for any help wanted posters or job listings, I found a secret entrance in one of the bars, which revealed a hidden barber shop which was occupied by a few saiyans with scissors. They threatened to kick me out, but seeing as I was desperate, I asked them if they were hiring. I don't know what kind of god was watching over me that day, but for whatever reason, the owner of the shop took me on as a student, showed me the proper cutting techniques, and taught me how to talk nice to the customers so they would give me more tip money. So I worked in that underground shop, where I trimmed the hair of any saiyan soldier who'd pay and didn't want to see any of their comrades with their bad hair. The place I worked even had a special gel that regrew any saiyan's hair-"_

" _Wait, so you're saying you have a gel that can regrow my hair back?! WELL, COME ON! GIVE IT TO ME!"_

 _Nappa sighed. "I don't have it."_

 _The Saiyan Prince grimaced at Nappa's words. "WELL THEN WHY THE HELL DID YOU BRING ME HERE?!"_

 _Nappa grazed through his cabinet drawer next to his bed, and found a pair of scissors covered with a layer of dust. "I think I might be able to even out your hair, and if anyone has the gall to ask, you could just say you wanted to have a change of look for your ceremony. That way you won't look like an idiot in front of your own coronation ceremony, and I won't have my head served on a platter. Are you in or not?"_

" _What other choice do I have? Lets go!" Vegeta sprinted for the bathroom door and seated himself. "While I'm young Nappa!"_

" _Right right…" Sweat bullets began to rain down on Nappa's face. It had been almost 10 years since he'd used these rusty things. Oh well… He tried to remember everything he learned 30 years ago and began._

 _When Vegeta felt Nappa's thick fingers combing through his hair, he shuddered. Such a close range of distance with Nappa fondling through his hair was such an unnatural feeling. This was by far the most awkward thing he had ever experienced in his life. He'd take this to his grave, and he bet Nappa would too._

 _Bored out of his mind, Vegeta looked at the clock and began to click his thumbs together to match the rhythm of the ticking clock. After 200 ticks, Vegeta started to envy the dead saibamen. He felt as bored as a blind man watching a movie._

 _After clicking his thumbs 500 times, he reached his breaking point. "CAN YOU HURRY UP WITH-"_

" _It's done. See for yourself." Vegeta swatted Nappa's hands out of his hair. "It's about time! If you did anything bad to my hair, I swear I will…" His voice fell flat when he saw himself in the mirror. It looked… good._

 _His flaming, jet-black tipped hair was even more rigid and edged. The rounded hole created from the ki blast vanished, as if it had never happened. He was speechless. If anything, it actually looked BETTER than his original hairstyle._

" _Wow… Thank y-." The Prince shook his head vigorously. What the hell was he saying? Was he actually about to lower himself by thanking him? Did Nappa put some sort of chemical in his brain while he was cutting his hair? "Thank god you didn't mess up, or else I would have stabbed your eyes out with your scissors."_

 _Nappa chuckled. "You'd never get the chance, you little punk." Nappa clicked the keypad and both doors burst open. "Now come on, lets go before both of us get it."_

* * *

If Vegeta could, he would have slapped himself for conjuring up such a nonsensical and frivolous memory. He'd learned not to hold on to such menial memories like this through his time under Frieza. That lesson, combined with the countless missions he went on, helped him cope with the untimely death of his fellow saiyans.

He heard a sharp ding, and the relaxing sensation tingling all over his body quickly faded. He opened his eyes and saw two scientists standing over the controller pad. "Prince Vegeta, how are you feeling?"

The Prince snapped at the scientists, detesting the idea of creating small talk to such lowly maintenance workers like these. "None of your business how I'm feeling!" The agitated prince pointed at the door. "Now leave me be!"

The scientists gathered their coats and shoved each other through the door like feral animals fighting for their fresh meat. He rubbed his temples and thought about what he should do until he left for Earth again. What would he do for the next 4 hours?

Well, around 1:00 he always went to the bar and got wasted. "Come on Nappa, lets…" There he went again! This was the 2nd time his mind had dwelled on that useless reprobate and memories of him. He'd remembered the times where they would steal Frieza's private stash of wine and gorge themselves on whatever other alcohol the bartender carried. What the hell was getting into him? His mind was too detached and erratic to think clearly right now, and at that moment he wanted to keep it that way. And what better way than to binge drink like his life depended on it? "Who needs that overgrown toad anyway. Certainly not me."

* * *

Sitch had actually managed to pull it off. He had been assigned by the Hero Association to be the leader of the prophecy emergency countermeasure task force, which was a responsibility he did not take lightly. Right now, there were perhaps a few hundred, possibly one thousand criminals gathered in one place for this underground meeting.

"I would like to thank all of you for coming to this underground meeting and responding to our call. Many of you have high bounties on your head, and are ranked high on the Hero Association's wanted list. And yet, you have come here with absolutely no hesitation because you believe you will not be apprehended and arrested for your crimes. Let me assure you this has nothing to do with your criminal records or your business in the underground market. This is not any sort of elaborate trap, so we can talk freely.

"That being said, lets make sure we don't do any funny business. Standing to my right are 3 A-class heroes." The 3 A-class heroes, Heavy Tank Loincloth, Blue Fire, and Magic Trick Man were being looked upon with venomous stares. Murmurs spread through the group of criminals. "Do not mind them, they are simply bodyguards. However, these A-class heroes have abilities that rival S-class, so it would be unwise to do anything foolhardy."

"What was Sitch thinking?" said Blue Fire. "All the most wanted contract killers, weapons manufacturers, mad scientists, and escaped convicts are gathered in one place."

Magic Trick Man nodded. "There's no way these thugs will agree to assist us."

"I don't know exactly why these criminals were called here," said Heavy Tank Loincloth. "But with all of these highly wanted fugitives in one place, that means..."

Blue Fire finished Loincloth's thought. "If a single one of them tries to pull a fast one on us, I'll burn them to a crisp."

"Same here," said Magic Trick Man. "I'm not letting this opportunity to conduct a huge act of justice slip away. As soon as this meeting's over, I'm going for it."

All three heroes nodded in synchronization.

"Lets begin. Please take a look at the handout I'm about to give you." Sitch walked to the side of the podium and gently handed the 3 A-class heroes the handouts. The heroes looked at their superior with incredulity. "We're not paperboys!" said Blue Fire.

"Please just do it. I can't stand up to any of these criminals by myself, and you strength is at that of an S-class hero, so they shouldn't be a real threat to you." The 3 heroes groaned and did what they were told. As they passed the papers down, all of the criminals stared straight into the heroes eyes with pure defiance, but most of them were smart enough to know they were hopeless against these heroes, so they simply took the papers and said nothing.

"Ahem..." Sitch cleared his throat. "As you can see, the amount of disasters above tiger level has been rising at an abnormal rate. This month alone was 6 times higher than the average of the past 3 years." A slide projected above him, showing a graph and a few different images of mysterious beings of each category, excluding God, as the world was lucky enough not to have such a monumental disaster just yet.

"If you are not aware of Madame Shibabawa, she was a prophet who would assist the Hero Association. And a week ago, we found her final prophecy, which was specified to us at an exact day at the exact time." Shocked murmurs spread throughout the room. Another slide appeared above Sitch. It was the prophecy, word for word.

Sitch and Agoni had had a very long conversation about whether or not they should reveal the full extent of the prophecy to such hoodlums. This information was EXTREMELY sensitive, for it could decide the very fate of humanity, and to allow these criminals to know such information was like shouting out to the entire world, "Hey everybody! The world might be ending! Apparently, there's this space demon that's gonna come to Earth that not even S-class heroes can beat, but please remain calm and don't do anything stupid!" But they didn't have a choice. Despite the amazing strengths of some of the S-class heroes, especially Tatsumaki, there was simply no way for all of these heroes to handle the increased number of monsters, and if they couldn't beat this demonic threat, then nobody could. So the only other way to stop this was to replace quality with quantity, and that was where these thugs fit into the picture.

"The S-class heroes already have their hands full handling the current disasters, so in order to protect humanity from the imminent threat that is coming our way, the Hero Association would like to..." Sitch pinched his eyes closed. He couldn't believe he was about to say this. Every fiber in his body wanted to puke when he said this, but he had no choice. "We would like to enlist your help in our battle against these monsters."

Everyone stood in silence. However, Blue Fire took this news the worst. The veins on his face were popping, and his eyes were quickly reddening. Then, the anger came bursting out of him like a raging inferno. "YOU SEEK HELP FROM THESE CRIMINALS?! IS THIS REALLY THE ASSOCIATIONS DECISION?!"

The minister slammed his fist on the podium. "YES! THERE NOW STANDS A WALL IN FRONT OF US THAT CANNOT BE BROKEN DOWN UNLESS ALL OF HUMANITY JOINS TOGETHER TO KNOCK IT DOWN!"

The slide switched over, showing a map of several different human icons, meant to show the number of heroes in all 26 cities. "Right now, there are 390 C-class heroes, 101 B-class heroes, 38 A-class heroes, and only 17 S-class heroes! That's nowhere near enough to fend off against the hundreds of monsters appearing every year! The Hero Association is not acknowledging your criminal acts, but it's undeniable that some of you have abilities that rival the heroes!

"However, the Association is not so gullible as to believe you would do this for free!" The next slide appeared, which caused the criminals to gasp and lick their lips with greed.

"For every monster you defeat, you will be rewarded. Your reward will vary based on the level of the monster you defeated. As you would expect, the higher the threat, the more money you will get. Now, depending on how many of you need to defeat a monster, the bounty will decrease. So defeating a dragon-level threat singlehandedly would get the greatest compensation."

Heavy Tank Loincloth jeered. "Sure. Let it be, but it's a complete waste of money. When the time comes, they'll all be useless."

"Yo Pops! I can't let that insult slip!" One of the criminals who was hotheaded and foolish enough to talk back to heroes more powerful than himself pulled a knife out to Loincloth. He wore a regular pair of jeans and a striped jacket, with spiky orange hair to go along with this oddly normal attire. He had a wicked smile that showed no remorse, and his eyes were like gateways that led to an empty room, filled with nothing but barbarous instincts to maim and kill. "In terms of killing, you couldn't even come close to matching my level of experience! You wanna try it out, see if I'm wrong?"

In a flash, the punkish criminal was barreled 5 feet into the ground. Loincloth spat at the lowlife trash. "They follow no beliefs!"

Both Blue Fire and Sitch stared at Loincloth with blank faces. "But... But the scale of the oncoming disaster..."

"WHOA WHOA WHOA! THE PROPHECY HIT THE BIG ONE! THE BIG ONE!" Everyone in the room turned their attention to the unknown stranger in the crowd. The criminal had a tight black long-sleeved shirt with white and loose white pants, with a yellow cloth belt tied around his waist. He had long silver hair that spiked upward into two large spikes. He had a wicked smile, similar to the criminal who was now buried in cement, and yellow eyes that shone in the dimly lit room. "NOW IS THAT PROPHET FUCKING AMAZING OR WHAT?! SHE CAN EVEN FORSEE A DISASTER LEVEL GOD?! WOW!"

"Oh great." Magic Trick Man slapped his forehead. "All those criminals living in the dark side really do seem to have a screw lose, it seems."

The white haired fighter spoke again. "Gotta admit, what the old fart said is true! Even if all of you ganged up on me, you wouldn't stand a chance!"

An anime-style sweat drop fell down Sitch's face. 'Looks like this meeting's attracted more weirdos than I bargained for...'

"I AM GAROU! THE MAN WHO WORSHIPS MONSTERS, AND HAS ALREADY DECIMATED COUNTLESS DOJOS DURING HIS TRAINING!" Garou raised his arms, like an open invitation for whatever these lowlifes could dish out at him. "There's plenty of fodder here! Fodder for me to become stronger... NOW LETS DO THIS! I CAN FEEL THE RUSH! COME ON, BRING IT ON! NOW THAT WE'RE ALL GATHERED HERE IN ONE PLACE, WE CAN FINALLY FIND OUT WHO'S REALLY THE STRONGEST! THAT IS WHY I AM HERE!"

None of the criminals moved a muscle.

"Just stop." Sitch couldn't take more of this daffy rubbish spewing from the mouthes of the evildoers. "I did not gather you all here for something this farcical."

"Farcical?"

Sitch motioned Garou toward the exit. "That's enough now. You may leave."

"That's how you treat your guests? Mr. Minister of Justice? I see... I've made up my mind. I'll punish the backwater cowards." Garou's yellow eyes were obscured, overshadowed by obsidian black evil sprouting from the excitement of battle. "Time to conduct evil. Lets make this a slaughter party."

"Another goddamn freak. I didn't want it to come to this, but it seems like you'll have to throw him out."

"With pleasure," said Magic Trick Man, taking out his wand for battle. This would get bloody.

* * *

 _"No! It's Justice Man! It's that lame song again!"_

 _A little boy, filled with zealous energy, eagerly waited for the climactic conclusion of his favorite cartoon. But sadly, Justice Man had just arrived to ruin everything._

 _"No! It was just getting good for the bad guy! That stupid hero Justice Man just had to come in here and ruin everything again! He was SO CLOSE to world domination! Come on, Count Devil! Don't let this jerk beat you! Beat him and take over the world!" Count Devil tried his hardest, but Justice Man was too powerful. In seconds, Count Devil was on the ground, marking Justice Man's 50th victory over villainy. "Dammit! He lost again! Dad! Will there ever be a monster that's powerful enough to beat Justice Man?"_

 _The boy's father shook his head. "No, Justice Man won't lose to anyone?"_

 _"But why? Justice always prevails, but that doesn't make any sense. The monsters are always the ones working their butts off, trying to do their best to do what they want, but they always get killed off in the end. I don't want that kind of scenario! It's not fair at all! It's boring!_

 _"Monsters have ambitions too. What about the way I feel? The way I cheer them on as a fan? The monsters are always way cooler..."_

* * *

'The popular will win, the hated will lose. It's such a terrible tragedy. But that's why I won't lose.' Garou grasped onto Magic Trick Man's collar. The hero hadn't even seen his movements. 'I will become the strongest monster in history and change this scenario! No matter what I face.'

"Magic Trick Man!" Heavy Tank Loincloth rushed to his fellow A-class hero's assistance. But Garou was faster. With a devious smirk, Garou grabbed his right arm and broke his bones. The hero screamed with pain. Deciding the hero wasn't worth the trouble, Garoustruck Heavy Tank Loincloth with a very powerful right hook to his face, knocking him out in the process.

An upsurge of cheering erupted from the crowd of criminals. "You're the man!" "Give it to those bitches!" "Let me be your sidekick!"

Garou turned to the group of delinquents. "Oh, don't be so quick to cheer. You're next."

The cheers immediately died down, and were replaced with gasps of disbelief. "Wait, but why?" said one of the criminals. "We're bad guys just like you!"

Garou sneered. "Please! I'm not on your side. I'm not on the heroes side of the humans side. I'm a monster; nothing more, and nothing less."

"I couldn't agree more." Garou turned around to see Blue Fire, who was placing one of his hands in front of the other. He'd studied the special techniques of all A-class heroes, and he knew about Blue Fire's portable flamethrowers. He, for one, wasn't planning on getting cremated. "Now die, monster."

A long stream of fire burst from Blue Fire's hands. Garou swiftly dodged the attack, and using his superior agaility and strength, instantly appeared behind Blue Fire and tore off his right arm. The pain Loincloth felt was nothing in comparison to what Blue Fire felt. He screamed, rolling on the floor and clutching the stub where his arm used to be. The criminals behind Garou, however, weren't as fast, and dozens of these nefarious hoodlums had been cremated by Blue Fire's flames, so they were groveling on the floor alongside Blue Fire.

"Bastard!" The criminals charged at Garou, hoping that their sheer numbers could defeat this monster. But they might as well have been throwing pebbles at him, because it would have been equally effective. Garou effortlessly blew away the crooks one by one, kocking them out with a single blow. It only took about 3 minutes, 5 minutes max, for Garou to deal with all of them. Garou smiled. "This is merely the beginning. Today, I declare war on the Hero Association itself. 6 months from now, I will challenge King, the strongest man on the planet, himself. I'll leave you to ponder on that Sitch." Sitch was cowering in a corner, the shock of a human defeating all of these fighters singlehandedly still fresh and ripe in his mind. "Now have a good day." Garou walked out the door with a steady stride, like it was another just another regular day in this not-so-regular world.

"Could he be the one? The Devil of Frost..."

"Minister Sitch?" Genos had just arrived on the scene to discuss with Sitch about the two dragon level monsters that had arrived a week ago, when he was met with a pile of unconscious bodies of heroes and criminals alike, some cremated and one even missing his arm. What had happened? "Minister, what's going on?"

"You have no idea..." Sitch shook his head. "Now, lets get down to business. We have alot to talk about."

* * *

Saitama scowled in his sleep. Shortly after Genos left, Saitama ate some of the leftovers from yesterday's dinner. After heating up and eating a few delicious spring rolls, he felt an unbearable amount of sleepiness overcoming him. He guessed that going to bed at 12 in the morning and waking up at 7 wasn't exactly the best idea, so he plopped himself onto his sleeping bag and dozed off within a matter of minutes.

He laid down on his back, listening to nothing but the sound of his air conditioner humming in his apartment. Suddenly, he began to feel himself slipping out of his body, like he was being ripped right out of his body. It was like as if spirit was a Band-Aid, and it was being ripped off of his body. Saitama attempted to break free of this spiritual grip, to escape this sensational enigma, but whatever was causing this was too strong for him, and his sleepiness was only making it worse.

After several minutes, or maybe an hour, or 3 years, he couldn't tell, his sense of tiredness faded away, and he opened his eyes. As soon as he did so, he became intrigued at what he saw. All around him stretched a field of yellow daises as far as the eye could see, with beautiful golden petals decorated on each and every one of them. However, he frowned when he looked up. Just above him was a blood red sky that gave the setting a tone of eeriness, as if some sort of terrible apocalypse was just seconds away from destroying this entire valley.

As he began turning around, he stopped dead in his tracks. Standing in front of him was a massive creature. Its entire body was covered with a layer of bones and flesh, making it appear as if it was pulled inside out. Saitama felt shudders rack his spine when he looked up at it's face: there was nothing. It was as if the face was completely carved off, leaving nothing but a blank slate, devoid of any life. This didn't make any sense. Ever since he'd finished his training, he'd rarely ever displayed a sliver of the emotion he had before. But right now, he could himself literally shaking in his boots. For him, he was staring at the epitome of terror.

"Hello there, insect."

* * *

The HQ was bustling as usual. Through hordes of phone calls, paperwork, potential lawsuits, and collateral damage fines, the staff continued to hectically work in a frenzied state. They were so busy, that the three workers at the front desk didn't even bat an eye when an elderly man with a dome haircut came in and flashed his identification. All they could think about was getting through their overly booked schedule.

The unidentified elderly man began to walk through the compound of the HQ, navigating through its complex maze of hallways like he'd worked there his whole life. After combing through corridors after corridor of doors leading him further and further underground, he finally made it to a large steel door.

He reached for his front pocket, and inserted a jet-black card into the keypad. After about 10 seconds, the dark red light blinked light green, and the door opened for the unknown stranger.

The infamous, overbearing S-class hero Metal Knight was calmly going through the security footage, observing the actions of these everyday workers while he was on his break, when he was interrupted by a man standing behind him he knew all too well. The hero smiled.

"Hello, Bofoi."

The hero didn't move an inch from his seat. "Welcome. I believe you go by the name Dr. Kuseno now, don't you?"

Dr. Kuseno slowly stepped forward. The two were mere feet away from each other. "Yes."

"I must say I was rather surprised to see you here. I didn't expect you to so seamlessly override the Hero Association's database and bypass my security system."

Dr. Kuseno smirked. "You might have a keen eye for robotics, but data encryption has never been your strong suit, brother."

Bofoi swung his chair around and stared at Dr. Kuseno with a sense of curiosity and amusement. "It's been too long, little brother."

* * *

 _In response to the people who believe I am undervaluing Saitama's power, you're using logic from two completely different universes. There is no limit to how powerful anybody in dbz universe can get. A saiyan grow stronger every time he get defeated in battle, meaning that there is no limiter on how powerful he becomes since he becomes stronger than he already was every single time, thus breaking his "limiter" as well. That argument doesn't make a lot of sense to me. I said it before and I'll say it again, but I think removing the limiter just means Saitama can become as strong as he wants, but not that he can call on infinite strength. And being able to blow up the planet isn't much of a milestone. For god's sake, YAMCHA could blow up the planet. If Master Roshi could blow up the moon in his maximum power state during his fight with Goku, then Yamcha could do it if he had a power level of over 1,000. So no, destroying a planet isn't a good argument for proving he has limitless power. Until Chapter 9!_


	9. Three Heads are Better than One

_All right, folks! Chapter 9 is up! Now, I have to say that out of all the chapters I have written, this was by far the biggest pain in the ass. I had to rewrite the first half like 6 times until I was happy with it, and it took me hours! Anyway, I'd like to thank all of the reviewers and viewers who have been indulging in my fanfiction. Your support really means a lot. I'd also like to thank Soulwars1998, who helped push me out of a sort of writer's block I've been having for the past two weeks. So here it is: Chapter 9!_

* * *

"It's been too long, little brother."

The two elderly, scientific prodigies were gazing at each other, neither of them backing down. It had been several years since either of them saw each other, and tense didn't even begin to cover their relationship.

The older brother gradually broke this intense stare-off and calmly strode over back to his desk to brew a fresh pot of coffee. "So what gave you the gall to return after all these years?"

Dr. Kuseno tightened his fists; the pain from his fingernails helped him control the rage threatening to bubble up and burst. "There was something important I needed to discuss with you."

Bofoi chuckled in amusement. "Oh? And what might that be?"

The younger doctor stomped to the S-class hero and slammed his fist on the table. "I'm in no mood for your nonchalant attitude! The fate of Planet Earth hinges on this very issue! I wouldn't have come if the situation wasn't so grave!" Bofoi leaned forward to his brother and raised his eyebrows. The only time he ever heard his brother sound this serious was when he made a call about 4 years ago and asked for some very expensive equipment. If his little brother went through the trouble of meeting him face-to-face instead of on the phone, it must be as serious as he says. 'I guess it won't hurt to amuse him' thought Bofoi. "Alright. You've piqued my interest."

He received a snort in response. "Of course it has. Weapons always lengthen your attention span. But before we do anything, you're going to tell me everything you know about that."

* * *

It took a few seconds for the Caped Baldy to snap out of his poignant and fearful state and return to his signature expressionless face, with a snarky attitude to go along with it. "Well I'm definitely not in Kansas anymore… So, Wicked Witch of the West, did you transport me here to get me and my little dog too?"

The abominable monstrosity let out a deep laugh laced with nothing but malice. "Hiding your fear under ill-fated attempts of insults? I must say I'm rather surprised you haven't crawled to the floor and begged for mercy. The few souls who have come to this place have been driven to nigh insanity by the overwhelming aura emanating from my spirit."

"Just great. Another pompous asshole… How the hell can you talk without a mouth?" Saitama rubbed his shoulders and his body began to shiver. "Did you let in a draft or something? Why is it so…" Saitama looked down and saw the answer to his question. He was utterly nude, from head to toe, leaving nothing to the imagination. He wasn't even given the courtesy of some underwear.

Well, since the creepy skeleton had pissed him off, he wouldn't have to worry about his exposed privates because there'd be nobody left alive to see his penis. So before the mysterious bastard had the chance to speak again, Saitama threw a punch with 10% of his power. But to his perplexity, no force was emitted. "What the hell…"

"This dimension has a primordial magic that only beings as powerful as myself can tap into. Right now, your spirit has been transported, and your body is nothing but an empty vessel." The Caped Baldy blew out his cheeks. Without his strength, he knew he wouldn't last half a second against a mysterious being. "So let me guess: you came to kill me? Because if you are, you're not the first guy to try it."

The ominous creature made a very loud grunt, and the entire field of daisies suddenly burst into white flames. "Oh I wish I could. More than anything, I would love to see your lifeless, decrepit body lying at my feet. The mere thought of tears in your eyes brings me pure ecstasy. But I cannot. This dimension has helped me hone my already immeasurable magical powers, but I am incapable of manifesting myself into your dimension. And besides, your power is much too great for any of my spells to have any damaging effects on you."

Saitama furrowed his eyebrows. "So then why'd you bring me here?" The monstrous aberration nudged his head back down. He clenched his fists when he saw Saitama staring at him with an impassive, blank face. "You are a degenerative, vainglorious insect. A mere mortal, with an abysmal intelligence and not even the slightest knowledge of Ki, was able to obtain physical strength worthy of a deity. You even managed to defeat Vaccine Man, my most powerful creation to date, with ease.

"Well, your petulant games end now, for there is a warrior who not even you could lift a finger to. The Space Emperor Lord Frieza is coming; only the gods themselves surpass him in sheer might. You believe Lord Boros is the most powerful enemy you have ever faced? In comparison, he is a mere paper tiger in front of a storm. "

Saitama's face lit up. "Wait, really? Are you serious?"

The monster laughed, and if he wanted to, he would have been smiling maliciously. "Oh yes." But the abomination stared in confusion when Saitama began whooping and pumping his fists in the air. Here he was, standing in front of a terrifying creature, without his strength to assist him, he was just told that there was a being above Boros, and he was actually getting excited? "That sounds fucking awesome! So when is he gonna get here? I hope it's soon! I'm not really good at waiting!

This human had gotten on his last nerve. He had hoped to inspire more fear with this terrifying message and his haunting appearance, but the warrior didn't show even the slightest trickle of worry. It was useless to carry any further. "I've had enough of your absurdity. I might not be able to kill you, but I can at least try to silence you and your incessancy."

The Caped Baldy scratched his head, wondering what he was talking about. Without realization, his body tensed reflexively to the sudden drop in temperature. Saitama then noticed a blood red aura enveloping the skeleton creature. "Your day is soon at hand, human."

The last thing Saitama saw before plummeting into oblivion was a huge red beam of energy shot from the monster's hand and a mouth forming on the giants face, twisting into a smile that was worthy of the Devil himself.

* * *

"AHHHH!" Saitama bolted up from the ground. He slowly opened his eyes, but the first thing he registered was a sharp, almost overwhelming headache squeezing his brain like one would a sponge. "What the hell?" Attempting to alleviate the pain, he closed his eyes and began rubbing his temples, but it was pointless; he wanted to feel pain, but this was over the top, and it wasn't even the kind of pain he wanted to experience again.

After about 20 seconds of incessant rubbing, he opened his eyes and started to take in the surroundings. He was back in his apartment, the sun shining through his grimy windows and the faint sound of his outdated air conditioner humming in his ears.

Saitama scratched his head like a mindless monkey, trying to remember what had just happened, when the memories of the skeleton creature came flooding back to him, which only made the splintering pain threatening to crack his head in two only more severe. All he could understand from that mumbo jumbo dialogue was that there was an extremely powerful being headed for Earth. There was no possible way this was a dream. Even his past visions of the Subterranean folk wasn't as vivid or lifelike as what he just experienced. No, whoever that was, he wasn't just the average run-of-the-mill powerless asshole, and if he were a guessing man, he would say this splintering headache he was feeling was his doing. It must have been meant to kill him, but it wasn't powerful enough to finish the job. "If I see that son of a bitch again, I'm gonna rip his mother fucking…"

"Good afternoon master!" Saitama grimaced when he heard his front door slam shut and his disciple annoyingly run to his side. "Genos! Don't slam the door like that! You're gonna piss off the neighbors, then I'm going to get a phone call that'll just be 40 minutes of having to listen to them bitching about something you caused, then I'm going to get a call from the fucking landlord, then I'M GOING TO BE FUCKING HOMELESS!"

Genos' eyes darkened to pitch black holes. He instantly fell to the floor and bowed in utter shame. "My deepest apologies Master! I did not mean to do such a reckless and irresponsible thing! I will never make that mistake again!"

Saitama sighed and covered his eyes with his hands. "Get up Genos." Doing as his master told him, he stiffened himself to be as straight as a board. "Dude, I'm sorry for lashing out like that, but I'm having the biggest headache right now."

"A headache?!" The teenage cyborg dashed to the kitchen, his eyes filled with worry. He simply could not have Master's daily routine of TV watching, manga reading, and video games be spoiled by such a minute headache. Genos hurriedly sprinted back to his master, this time with a glass of water and some pills. "Here are two acetaminophen and ibuprofen pills that might ease the pain."

The Caped Baldy snatched the items from his hand and desperately drank the pills. The water dripped down his chin and streamed all the way down to his pajamas as he slurped his drink down.

"It might take some time for the pills to take effect, so you need some time to be patient."

Saitama sighed in exasperation. He then jumped onto his sleeping bag on the floor in hopes of getting comfortable. "Whatever. So, how'd the meeting go?" The Demon Cyborg tense at his master's words. "Minister Sitch and President Agoni relayed to us a prophecy foretold by Madame Shibabawa."

"Really? Another one? That's so weird…"

"It goes like this:

 _The Earth is in terrible danger_

 _A simian's downfall will ripple through space_

 _To a demon of unspeakable terror_

 _The Devil of Frost shall reap and sow_

 _Seeds of malevolent destruction_

 _The poison of vainglory, a two-sided coin_

 _To lead a trail of unity or division_

 _The demon's wrath quelled through pain, and_

 _The desolate wasteland returned to life."_

Both heroes held their breath.

"Wait a minute…" Devil of Frost? Frieza? They seemed like awfully similar names. Saitama scrunched his brows, attempting to put the pieces together in his mind. Normally, he would barely give two shits about the sort of random, disappointing prophecies or anything promising that would be thrown at him. But this was… different. This was too connected for it to be a mere coincidence, and if he could figure out how this all intertwined, then there might be a satisfying end result.

Genos noticed his master shift his head to look at the wall, and he didn't quite understand. "Master? What is the problem?"

Saitama did not respond to Geno's question, continuing to dwell in his inner thoughts. After about 10 seconds of silence, Saitama turned his head to face his disciple. "Something weird is going on…"

Genos swiftly seated himself next to his master, eager to hear his master's opinion on whatever was on his mind. "What do you mean?"

"While I was sleeping, my spirit was taken outside my body, and next thing I knew, I was in some sort of weird, Kansas-field utopia for daisies." The teenage cyborg marveled at what his master was saying to him. It certainly sounded like a very odd experience. "Anyway, there was this REALLY creepy skeleton creature that actually managed to unnerve me, and given how dull I've been feeling lately, that's saying something.

"He started droning on about something magic, which was pretty much what all the other wannabe bad guys have done, so no surprise there. But then he caught my interest and told me there was a guy named Frieza who was on his way to Earth, and apparently this guy could kick Boros's ass. It sounded awesome, but just before I could ask more details, he attacked me with some sort of energy wave, which brought me back here."

"Are you injured?"

Saitama rubbed his forehead. "I'm pretty sure he's the one who gave me this massive headache, but other than that, I think I'm good. But that's not what I'm thinking about right now. Whatever this prophecy is, it has to be connected with the skeleton guy. In fact, now that I think about it, I also heard that big guy mentioning Frieza…"

Genos stared at his master, surprised that he was putting this much thought into this. There was in no way he thought his master was dumb, but he simply never got the opportunity to see his master's inherent senses, both physical and mental prowess. "So there must be some sort of connection or relationship between the two mysterious beings and this Frieza. Not only that, but Dr. Kuseno noted that the technology they possessed when they arrived was on a level completely different from what he had ever seen."

"So… Do we do something?"

Genos stroked his chin, debating on what they should do. A light bulb flashed in his mind; he knew what to do. "I believe I have an idea master. We'll tell Dr. Kuseno everything we've been able to accumulate and compare notes on what we've learned and any more information he's gathered on the scouter. If you can, may you accompany me this time?"

Saitama stretched his arms to relieve the tenseness in his muscles. "Sure. I'm not going to be able to sleep anyway with this nagging headache, and I haven't done anything productive all today, so what the hell?"

Genos let out a gleeful smile. "Good to hear. I'll call Dr. Kuseno and tell him I'll be coming back." The cyborg flipped out his cellphone and dialed the good doctor's number. The seconds ticked away, and Genos eventually received the doctor's voicemail. "Odd."

"What's the matter?"

"It's unlike the good doctor to not pick up his phone when I call him." The B-class hero shrugged his shoulders and looked at his disciple with annoyance in his eyes. "What's the big deal? You can just call him later."

"This matter cannot afford to be put off and swept under the rug for a few days. I'll have to find the doctor's location by tracing the signal from his cellphone." The Demon Cyborg began to vigorously type on his phone. An anime sweat drop fell down Saitama's face when he began to hear very loud beeping sounds emitting from Genos' cellphone. "Well, this is one way to wake up from a shitty sleep…"

The beeping sound came to a halt. "I have found Dr. Kuseno. He is currently at… Hero Association Headquarters?" The Demon Cyborg let out a sound of confusion. "Why would Dr. Kuseno be there? He doesn't have any affiliation with them as far as I know."

The Caped Baldy was getting a tad tired of this playing out so long, so he slapped his thighs, taking away Genos' eyes from his screen. "So are we going or not?" said an irritated Saitama.

Genos slapped his phone shut and with a steely resolve, he firmly deciding what they would do. "Yes we will. We'll go to Dr. Kuseno, and we'll find out what's really going on. That, I promise."

* * *

In the depths of the Hero Association, Metal Knight's laboratory was silent. The room was brimming with suspense, shock, and worry. Bofoi was slack jawed, still trying to formulate in his mind how his little brother could have figured out about the alien space pod he recovered. He had only recovered the pod the day before. How could his little brother have figured this out in merely a night? This must have been what he meant when he said that he wouldn't come here unless he had to. After about 5 seconds, his shock diminished and quickly a steely facial façade formed on his face. "Impressive. How were you aware of the pod's existence?"

The younger brother dug in his right pocket and pulled out Nappa's scouter, and as soon as he did, Bofoi stared at it intensely, intrinsically, as if he were a child and the scouter was a piece of candy he greedily desired. "You missed something."

Dr. Kuseno grudgingly gave the scouter to Bofoi, who began looking at it in a very fascinated and curious manner, similar to how Saitama had probed it. Dr. Kuseno knew that in order for his plan to work, he would need to renew his faith in his older brother, no matter how challenging it was. "Exactly what is this device?" said Bofoi, an almost geeky like tone in his voice that one would never expect to here from him.

"It's a scouter that locates the energy levels of any life form. Its capacities are years beyond any of my current energy readers." Bofoi's eyes widened. With this kind of technology added to his arsenal, combined with the alien space pod's speed, he could expand his knowledge and robotic empire farther than he ever thought possible. But something didn't quite make sense to him. "But why would you show me this? Especially if you knew I had a highly advanced alien spacecraft as well?"

The younger scientist forcefully ran his hands through his hair. "I haven't come even close to recreating this, and you…" The doctor struggled to get the next words through his mouth instead of retching. "You're the only person I know who could have even a chance of recreating this."

Dr. Kuseno pressed his lips together when he saw his brother fold his arms together and smirked with confidence. "You're finally right about something…"

"DON'T PLAY THAT SNARKY CARD NOW! YOU HAVE TO BE JUST AS CLUELESS WITH THE SPACECRAFT'S TECHNOLOGY AS I AM WITH THIS SCOUTER! I KNOW IT!"

Angered that his little brother would make such an accusation, he pointed accusingly at his brother. But they both knew that he was right. Bofoi put his finger down and sighed. Just like his brother, he had been working all night, the adrenaline and excitement of this new extraterrestrial shuttle keeping him awake more than coffee ever could. But he was stuck. He could grasp the concepts of the mechanisms and systems imbedded in the ship, but he was completely unfamiliar with the material that comprised the outer shell, what kind of systems allowed for elongated life sustainability, what fuel source powered it, and several other minute yet essential factors that would allow him to mass produce these pods.

Metal Knight inwardly scoffed. It was rather ironic; even after all the years they spent apart, his little brother still knew him better than anyone else. "Alright… Lets say that hypothetically, I agree to work alongside you again. What then?"

"I'd like to know as well. What then?" said a voice standing right behind him.

Dr. Kuseno gasped. "Genos?" He swiftly turned around, and there was Genos accompanied by Saitama. Neither of them looked happy. Both of them must have come from Saitama's apartment, assuming Genos already told Saitama everything he just learned. "How did you find my location?"

Genos crossed his arms. "It was an elementary job of tracking your signal from your cellphone. Dr. Kuseno, what are you doing here with Metal Knight?"

"Hello there, Genos. I must ask: exactly how are you related to my little brother?"

Did they hear Bofoi correctly? Genos and Saitama slowly turned their heads to each other, seeing if they both heard the same thing. "Wait wait you're this guy's brother?" said Saitama.

Dumbfounded, Genos gazed at Dr. Kuseno to see if this was true. Dr. Kuseno sighed. The time for secrets was over. "Yes. Bofoi is my older brother. We haven't seen each other in years, and the last time I spoke to him was when I called him and asked that he donated to me resources vital to your operation." He turned back to his older brother. "Bofoi, Genos is a child whom I operated on when his human body was damaged beyond medical repair. That was why I called you for the equipment 4 years ago."

"Ahhh. Well brother, color me impressed. Of course he could never match to my former assistant, Child Emperor."

"But he is S class Rank 5. Wouldn't that make him a rank above you?" said Genos.

Bofoi's smirk quickly faltered. "Well, I mean… He wouldn't have gotten to that level without his years of working under me!" said Bofoi through stammering. He walked right into that one.

"ENOUGH!" shouted Saitama. The ibuprofen and acetaminophen was barely helping his massive headache. If anything, he was feeling more aggravated, and the constant pestering was like a pike being lodged into his skull. "CUT DOWN YOUR RETARDED MONOLOGUE TO TWENTY WORDS OR LESS! JESUS CHRIST, WITH ALL OF YOUR NONSTOP ARGUMENTS YOU'RE MAKING ME WISH I'D DIED DURING MY TRAINING!"

Metal Knight stared incrementally at this unidentified hero. "Have you any inkling in that bald little head of yours who you're speaking to? Wait a minute!" He tried to recollect where he had seen that bald head before, then he remembered he was the B-class hero who asked for tea at the last S-class meeting. Why the hell was he accompanying Genos? New questions kept popping up every minute, and he was starting to get sick of it.

"Bofoi, this is Master Saitama. He was unfairly placed in the lowest C-class ranking, even though he broke all known records during his physical trials." It was finally time for someone to stand up for Master Saitama, and Genos would not stand for this degradation of Saitama any longer. "Ever since his registration into the Hero Association, he has constantly taken time out of his busy schedule to fulfill his duties as a hero and defeated every single threat that has come his way with only a single punch. Do you remember the giant meteor that threatened to strike City Z?"

Bofoi nodded and motioned him to continue. "As you might remember, your missiles were ineffective in destroying the meteor, and my most powerful incineration attack was still not enough to stop it. You might have read this in the news, but it was thanks to Master Saitama that the meteor was destroyed. Along with this, he was the one who defeated the Deep Sea King, a Demon-level mysterious being that took on the likes of me, Puri-Puri-Prisoner, Lightning Max, Stinger, Sneck, 2 B-class heroes and 2 C-class hero with ea-."

"GENOS! I SAID TWENTY WORDS OR LESS!" said a boiling angry Saitama through gritted teeth. "I apologize, but I would like to go into this in depth. Do you have any beverage you could serve my master?" Metal Knight pointed to the pot of coffee he just finished brewing. "Help yourself. I don't have an appetite for beverages anyway right now. Cups are to the right." Saitama grinned, quickly pouring himself a hot cup of joe that he desperately needed. Meanwhile, Bofoi leaned his head back, starting to recall the stories he had read online and the harsh criticism that fell on the Caped Baldy."

"Not only that, but there have been several other threats less commonly known or never heard of by the Hero Association and he public. These monsters must have ranged from tiger to dragon, and Saitama decimated all of them. Perhaps his biggest victory was against the leader of the Space Pirates that recently invaded Earth."

"Wait, I thought the leader was the Dragon level threat named Melzalgald, the one who took 4 S-class heroes to defeat?" questioned Bofoi.

Genos shook his head. "No, he was only a henchman. The real leader was a menace much more powerful. According to Master, he is the most powerful opponent he has ever faced so far, and even he stood no chance against Master Saitama's immeasurable power."

The older scientist craned his head down to the floor, debating the facts presented before him. There were many things that the Hero Association did not disclose to the public, and he was well aware of the corruption within the Hero Association. He would understand if they would rather keep someone as visually unappealing as Saitama away from the S-class rankings. But could there really be somebody as powerful as Genos described?

After 30 seconds of internal decision-making, he perched his head back up. "Very well. Saitama."

"Yea?"

"I'm still unsure whether your power is as grandiose as Genos claims it to be, so I would like you to run some experiments for me to test your strength."

Saitama shrugged his shoulders. "Sure."

"WAIT!" Dr. Kuseno loudly spoke up. "You can only run these tests IF Child Emperor assists us in our endeavor."

Bofoi swerved to his brother, staring at his brother with wide eyes and raised eyebrows. "Why?!"

Dr. Kuseno enigmatically smiled at his brother. "If Child Emperor was tutored under you, and he is ranked 5th in the S-class, his scientific knowledge and prowess must be truly impressive." His smile faded and hardened to his serious face. "We are going to need all the assistance we can get, and if Child Emperor was already tutored under you, it will be easier for him to understand your methods, habits, and specific idiosyncrasies, thus allowing a more smooth work environment in terms of productivity, and perhaps we will be able to run things much more effectively."

Metal Knight slammed his head on the desk, closing his eyes in annoyance. "Damn it…" To him, having to ask for his former assistant's help was a blow to his pride, but his brother was right. If he wanted to expand his knowledge and robotic army's capabilities, he needed to make sure he comprehended everything about this alien technology. He picked his head up. "FINE! I will call him to assist us in our studies."

"Good," said Dr. Kuseno.

"Now that is taken care of," said Genos. "We need to talk about-"

"Metal Knight!" His computer monitor flashed to life, with Minister Sitch on the screen.

"What is it Sitch? You have already bothered me once today. I have very important work to attend to, so make it short!"

"The extraterrestrial that we imprisoned in your most secure holding cell, he's waking up."

Everyone froze in their places; everyone except for Saitama, who was looking happier than he had been all day. "Damn, this coffee really hit the spot!"

* * *

 _What's really funny is that when I was writing this chapter, as soon as I wrote about Saitama's headache, I got a headache about 20 minutes later that stuck with me for the rest of the day. COINCIDENCE?! Anyway, I hope you guys enjoyed the chapter and the uneasy cooperation that began between these two scientific geniuses. So you'll just have to wait patiently until Chapter 10!_


	10. Lunacy in a Box

_Chapter 10 is up! Sadly, this is more of a filler chapter than the others, so for those of you who expected Frieza to arrive, sorry to let you down, but I don't want to just jump in like that. I need to set the mood, so until then, no S-class heroes vs. Frieza Force fights. Sorry. But anyway, hope that you enjoy the chapter!_

* * *

A lustrous light.

That was the first and only thing Nappa could distinguish from the dim, obsidian colored room he was placed in. Attempting to rub his eyes, he was met with an overwhelming jolt of pain tingling all over his body. With his neck being the only part of his body that wasn't burdened with unbearable pain, he turned to see just exactly where he was. On his left, a pair of bunk beds laid on top of each other, both covered with two very thin layers of sheets and a pillow. He attempted to get up from the floor, but the paralyzing jolt of pain prevented him from even doing something as simple as that. How did he become so gravely injured? What happened to him?

"Wait a second…" His memory began jogging back again. His arrival on Earth, the pathetic standstill against the saibamen and the "heroes", the speedy little prick coming in with his cute toys, his utter decimation against the Caped Bastard. But the thing that cut him deepest was Vegeta abandoning him as if he was nothing.

He had been there for Vegeta throughout almost his entire life. He taught him everything he knew, stood by his side throughout his worst injuries as a child and adolescent, and if he was being honest, when he was with Prince Vegeta in his early 20's, it reminded him of his best moments with his father, making him feel as if he was reliving those memories all over again. They conquered countless planets together, spent night after night binge drinking to their hearts content at the Frieza Force bars, fought together against the toughest of warriors and the most impossible of situations. So why did Prince Vegeta do it? How could all of that time spent together just have been ignored and forgotten? Did that bond really mean nothing to him?

Nappa slammed his fist into the ground, but due to his weakened state, he winced in pain. Of course it didn't. Prince Vegeta was nothing but a filthy, lying, degenerate, dishonorable, lowlife who wasn't even an eighth a good a man as his father was. There was absolutely no way that their defeat would go unnoticed by Frieza, and more soldiers would be sent to this miserable mud ball. Once they arrived, Nappa would take their ship, somehow find Prince Vegeta, and rip his tail and balls off.

Normally, that would have been impossible, but he was a saiyan. His body would recover, giving him a tremendous boost of energy; the prince only suffered a punch to the face, which wasn't nearly enough for a significant energy boost. Meanwhile, Nappa was suffering from quite possibly the worst injuries he ever received. Nappa actually managed to crack a smile. "You'll pay, Prince."

But wait. Nappa focused his hearing deeply, for he could hear a faint noise. He closed his eyes, and after a few seconds, he realized it was steady breathing. He turned his head to the right with much difficulty, and he clenched his teeth. It was just his luck: The Speedy Little Prick was passed out right beside him. Why the hell was this guy in the same holding cell as him? He guessed it didn't really matter too much, as long as he wasn't awake to annoy him.

But something felt… weird, different. He could feel it; his senses were heightened, and he could sense something faint emanating from the prick. It was the strangest sensation, and he couldn't rationally explain it. It was almost as if…

"So, you've finally woken up!"

Nappa looked up and saw two men dressed in suits, two old geezers dressed in lab coats, the cyborg who he had a momentary energy duel with, the caped bastard, who was drinking a cup of what he assumed was coffee from the steam, and a blonde haired man with a scar running across his face. Nappa inwardly smirked. That man looked like he was a true war veteran, a merciless combatant who laid waste to armies with his mere fists. "Who's the guy with the scars on his face?"

"This is King: the strongest man on our planet. He is here for extra protection, just some extra incentive to make sure you don't do anything reckless." Nappa narrowed his eyes and focused very hard on King. Something didn't feel right about King. If he was truly the strongest man on this mud ball, then why wasn't he sensing anything prominently strong from him? He turned to the Caped bastard to see if he could sense anything, and he almost let out a gasp of surprise. What he could feel emitting from him was overwhelming; he didn't even have to concentrate to feel it. This wasn't making any sense. He wasn't any sort of genius, but if he could make a guess about what this was, he would say he'd gained a sixth sense: the ability to sense the presence and energy of life forms.

As they were waiting for Nappa to come to his senses, Minister Sitch saw Dr. Kuseno and almost jumped from his spot. "Who are you?! I've never seen you in this facility before! How did you get in here without the proper credentials?!"

"Sitch, calm yourself," said Bofoi. "This is my younger brother. He is here to assist me with understanding and reproducing the alien technology."

Sitch's anger quickly turned to relief. "Metal Knight, you never told me you had a brother!" Sitch swiftly shook Dr. Kuseno's hand. "I'm very sorry. Please forgive me."

Dr. Kuseno shook Sitch's hand, then waved his other hand in dismissal. "No worries. It was wrong of me anyway to barge in without a proper introduction or explanation."

"Well I would like to tell you it is such a relief to know you'll be assisting us in our endeavor!" said Minister Sitch.

While they were properly introducing each other, King was quietly standing with his arms crossed, staring at the mysterious being with killer eyes. However, as the seconds passed, he started to shift uncomfortably at the way the monster was squinting his eyes at him. He didn't want to be studied and stared at like some sort of freak, so he tapped the shoulders of Sitch, Agoni, and Dr. Kuseno. "I believe it would be best to return to the matter at hand, if we could."

"Oh, of course." Agoni swerved to the creature in containment. "HEY! We're talking to you!" said an aggravated President Agoni.

Nappa shot a look of anger at this human's arrogant demanding. "And I'm thinking! So how about you shut the fuck up and let me do that!"

Sitch angrily swept all of the papers from the table to the floor. "This man right next to me could grind you to a pulp before the words "I'm sorry" could even reach your lips, so you're going to tell me exactly what we need to know!

"Now, firstly: Why did you come to Earth?"

Nappa contemplated his decisions. What would he tell them? Was it better for him to lie, to tell them a bunch of false information that would cause them to run around in circles like a dog chasing his tail, trying to put the pieces together? Or would he come out with the truth? Without an empire to either govern or work for, he didn't know what he would do. He deplored the idea of going back to Frieza, but he knew at this point, he didn't have much of a choice. Besides, anything he told them now would probably be useless information or information they probably already knew. So what the hell? Might as well indulge them with his words.

"We got word that Lord Boros, one of the most wanted and powerful pirates in the universe, came to this planet and was defeated by an unknown warrior. So we came to this planet to search for him."

"An alien spaceship arrived on Earth a few weeks ago, and he was defeated by four of our S-class heroes."

"What?" That didn't make sense. Frieza's scouts were almost never wrong, and they wouldn't make such a blunder as getting the wrong number of warriors who defeated Boros. Nappa made a mental note of this.

"Alright. Second question: Why did your partner escape without you?"

Nappa's entire body tightened. "NONE OF YOUR DAMN BUSINESS, THAT'S WHAT! THAT RAT'S GONE, AND THAT'S ALL YOU NEED TO KNOW!" screamed Nappa at the top of his lungs.

"Wait, I thought he left you behind. He also called you worthless right?"

Agoni and Sitch turned to see who said that. It was the Caped Baldy.

"YOU SHUT THE FUCK UP, YOU BALD BASTARD!" His scream made Saitama cover his ears. "Dude! My headache was just getting better from the coffee! Don't get all pissy like that and ruin my day!"

Minister Sitch was at a loss trying to comprehend what he was talking about. The Caped Baldy wasn't even at the battle to hear this. Or was he?

No. Even if he was, he probably was just a bystander who stood by as Demon Cyborg did all of the work. He must have overheard those two conversing and caught a word of what they were talking about. He came to this conclusion because there was no way he could believe that a B-class hero could even stand up against a Dragon level threat like this.

"Caped Baldy, if you would, I would prefer you keep all thoughts to yourself until after the questioning is over. Ok." Minister Sitch turned his attention back to the prisoner. As he did so, his eyes darkened. It was like his soul became somber, almost afraid at having to hear the answer to this next question. "Now, tell me: WHO IS YOUR SUPERIOR?"

Everything went dead silent. The room began filling with anticipation and dread. Everyone was staring at Nappa, waiting for a response, for they knew that this answer would tell them who or what they would be up against.

Nappa remained silent and stoic. The look of that man in the suit was priceless: it was like he was asking for a truth he couldn't handle, and he knew it. He chuckled. Pretty soon, it went from a chuckle to a laugh, then from laughing to roaring in sheer delight.

Everyone but Saitama became unnerved when they saw Nappa howling with delight, rolling on the floor and clutching his ribs. That wasn't a good sign.

Minister Sitch was the first to respond from this. "What the hell is so funny?"

Nappa looked back at Sitch through misty eyes that were clouded by watery tears of joy that threatened to fall down his face. "It's just to know how royally fucked you are. You think I'm powerful? Compared to my boss, I'm an ant standing below a boot. I've only heard rumors about how powerful he is; I've seen him obliterate entire planets who defied his rule."

Sitch couldn't move; he couldn't speak to silence the prisoners' laughter. He was too stunned. As if that monster Garou who defeated an entire army of criminals wasn't bad enough, now another alien threat was headed straight for Earth. What were the odds?

"Although I have to say, the only one who could even hope to stand a chance is you." Nappa weakly pointed at Saitama. "Bald Bastard."

The minister pointed his finger at where Nappa was pointing, than followed the trail it was aiming at, and realized it was directed to the Caped Baldy. "Superalloy Darkshine? Are you back there, hiding in the corner?"

"What? No! That Caped Bald Bastard!"

Sitch shook his head. "There's no way. The Hero ranking is divided into four categories: S-class, A-class, B-class, and C-class, with S-class being the highest and C-class being the lowest. The cyborg you see here is in the S-class, and the other two heroes with me, King and Metal Knight, are in this class as well. The Caped Baldy is only in our B-class, our 2nd lowest ranking class in our association. The public recognizes him as a hero swindler who steals the credit from other S-class heroes by getting the final blow and ending the fight with one punch."

Was this planet that much in denial? Were they taking some sort of retard pill that made them oblivious to the obvious? Nappa scrunched his face in confusion. "Are you serious? If the Caped Baldy is in the 2nd lowest class, and that cyborg is in your highest class, then you guys must be mentally retarded. That bald asshole-"

"It's Saitama by the way."

"WHATEVER! Anyway, he's in an entirely different dimension from that cyborg! For god sake, he was the one who kicked me and my partner's asses and put me in this weakened state!"

Even though Saitama was the one who defeated him, he always found that powerful beings and warriors who could land powerful blows on him deserved proper credit and praise for their abilities, even if they were his enemies. He at least kept that sense of honor from his days before Frieza's annexation. And besides, the evidence was so palpable, he couldn't believe these people hadn't found it the tiniest bit suspicious or odd.

"I mean think about it! Doesn't it seem a little too weird that he ALWAYS gets the finishing blow after these S-class heroes haven't been able to finish the job, the most powerful fighters in this so called Association of yours?"

"My god…" The minister began to lose balance and almost fell to the floor. Genos and King quickly intercepted his falling body. "Are you alright Minister?"

"So much is being thrown at me…" Was this monster onto something? He remembered going through his results in the hero test. He broke every single record in the physical evaluation, breaking records from even the strongest S-class heroes.

Yet this was ignored due to the abysmal results he had on the written assessment. This was also partly due to the meeting they had the morning before in which they were discussing the rising number of candidates trying out for the Hero Association, and it was decided that quality mattered over quantity. This played a part as well in him being placed in the last ranking of C-class. But was he wrong? Could he really have been that dumb, that shortsighted, so focused on the public opinion and looks of such an odd hero that he ignored the obvious facts lying before him? That his strength was worthy of that of an S-class hero, and possibly above?

Sitch turned to the Caped Baldy, and walked to him in a calm, steady pace. He finally stopped when he was just a foot away from the B-class hero. "Is it true?"

"Is what true?"

"Are you actually as powerful as this monster claims you to be?"

"OF COURSE!" Genos moved next to Saitama, his eyes flaring with frustration. "This man is the most powerful warrior in the history of man! He was kind enough to take me in as his disciple, teaching me many things and making me much stronger both physically and mentally than ever before. Had my master not arrived to stop the meteorite, the Deep Sea King, and several other threats that aren't known by the public, we would have stood no chance. I was there; in every one of those battles, I gave it everything I had, and was unable to handle the problem myself. Every time, my master has been the one who saves me." It was finally time that his master got the credit he deserved, and he was done letting other take credit for his master's accomplishments, himself more than anyone. "Earlier today, during our meeting, I lied. I was not the one who defeated them. It was Sensei. I only did so because I thought it what Master Saitama would have wanted. But I will no longer do that.

"It is time that everyone was caught up to speed on what has happened and what is going to happen. Minister Sitch, Dr. Kuseno, Bofoi, if I may, I would like to speak all in private and tell you everything you do not know about Master Saitama and essential information my Master has received."

Dr. Kuseno finally spoke. "Yes. Brother, shall we?"

Bofoi's mouth didn't rise or fall one bit. "Very well. But we are to start working as soon as we are finished."

"Understood. Saitama, will you join us?"

Saitama nodded in confirmation. "This looks pretty serious, and if it means getting some more of this awesome coffee, then hell yea."

"And you…" Saitama swung his arm around and pointed his gloved hand to Nappa. "Don't go anywhere," said Saitama through some faint giggling.

Nappa snarled. "Oh HAHAHA! THAT'S A GOOD ONE, BECAUSE I'M LOCKED IN A CELL!" It was amusing to Saitama, seeing Nappa aggravated like this. That means he must have been making good zingers.

"Minister, you are coming, no?"

Sitch was at a loss, staring into empty space. "Minister!"

Geno's voice made him snap out of his dream-like state, and he shook his head like a dog after a bath. "Yes, I'm sorry. I just dazed off there for a moment. Yes, any information you have would be greatly appreciated."

"Do you need my assistance any longer?" said King.

"No, you've spent enough time here today. Metal Knight's cell should be more than enough to keep him restrained."

* * *

The group somberly walked behind Minister Sitch, who was walking himself to the meeting room without stealing a single glance away from the ground. He had navigated through these corridors so many times he could walk blindfolded through the entire compound. That was a manifestation of the countless hours he spent trying to instill duty and justice to everyone. What a joke he was.

Each of them entered the room in a single file. Sitch sat in the front seat, and the others sat on the seats nearest to them. If Sitch weren't so overbearingly overwhelmed by everything going on, he would have smiled. Finally, all the cards would be on the table, and it would become crystal clear.

"Demon Cyborg, start from the beginning. Don't leave out any important details whatsoever, including how you met the Caped Baldy."

Genos took a deep breath in. At last, his master's credibility as a true hero could be established. "This may take a while, so please be patient.

"It all started when I searching for the cause of an unusual number of animal deaths. I came to Z-city, and realized it was the work of Mosquito Girl, a demon-level mysterious being who had the ability to control other mosquitoes with a neurosignal, commanding them to drain all the blood from any living creature and transfer them to her."

"I remember about that. We were never able to find out who was the one responsible for defeating it. At least now that mystery is solved."

"Yes. Anyway, I did battle with her, and for a majority of the battle, I was on equal footing with the monster, able to dismember her legs and even get a slight advantage, forcing her to retreat for a short time. But all that changed when she began to draw in even more blood from the creatures in the surrounding area. At that moment, sensei arrived on the scene, attempting to eliminate a pestering mosquito with a can of mosquito spray.

"I told him to evacuate, but before he could do anything, the creature swarmed the city and attempted to eliminate me and master for good. I managed to incinerate all of the mosquitoes so she would no longer have a way to supply herself with more blood, but I was too late; she had already absorbed all the blood she needed. I was battered, swatted around like one of her helpers, unable to keep up with any of her movements. I knew I could not win, so the only option I had was to self-destruct. But seconds before my seemingly imminent demise, Master Saitama ended her reign of terror with a single, nonchalant slap.

"I was shocked. Here, this ordinary bald man who was wearing tropical garments, defeated a mysterious being who was just seconds away from killing me? I had to know more. So after the good doctor, Dr. Kuseno, repaired my body, I spied my master, observing his daily habits, noting the food he ate and taking a sample to analyze-"

"Wait a minute…" Saitama's eyes widened to the size of Boros' eye. He gasped. "IT WAS YOU?! YOU STOLE THE LARGEST FRY!" Saitama slammed the countertop, effectively leaving permanent markings of his unmitigated fury. Sitch tensed. At least now he knew there was a grain of truth in Demon Cyborg's assertions.

"I did not know it was so important to you. I am deeply sorry for my reckless actions."

"I punched an innocent criminal thinking he stole my fry! We're going to that restaurant and you're buying me an order of fries when we're done!"

Genos straightened. "Of course master!" Saitama's melodramatically angry expression disappeared, and he sat down in his seat, smiling and thinking about the deliciously salty taste of fries soon to be in his mouth.

"Where was I? Oh yes. Unable to discover the source of his strength, I decided to meet him face-to-face once again and went to his apartment. We then discussed for quite some time and I explained my backstory to him, and being the generous man my master is, he accepted my request and took me on as his disciple.

"However, we were interrupted by the arrival of a group of biologically modified fighters from the House of Evolution. After a long and arduous battle, both sensei and I defeated them. My opponent, a cyborg who called himself Armored Gorilla, then relayed the location of the House of Evolution's secret lair.

"It was then that both of us travelled to the hidden laboratory. Not wanting to deal with any pesky traps or soldiers, I disintegrated the entire base structure with my incineration cannons. This was the first time that The Hero Association recognized me and my occupation as a hero.

"After about one minute of walking through the thin and dimly lit corridors, The House of Evolution's strongest and most brutal warrior arrived: Carnage Kabuto. With a single blow, I was temporarily taken out of commission. He must have been a Dragon level threat, or at the very least a very powerful demon level monster. I do not know what happened after this, but a few minutes later, I recovered from my attack and followed the living energy signature, which lead me to a very expansive, white tiled room where both the creature and my master were preparing to fight.

"I launched a barrage of my most powerful attacks with everything I had, but he stopped all of them like they were nothing. He even managed to deflect my incineration cannons by merely blowing the flames away with his breath." Genos grimaced at the memory of his disgraceful defeat. It was challenging to relive these moments, as they continued to shoot down his morale. But he had already gone this far, so he would not leave any essential detail out of the picture.

"Once I was knocked out, Carnage Kabuto prepared to attack my master, but just as he was about to swing his fist, he sensed the immense power and danger radiating from my master and retreated in fear. After much persuasion by Carnage Kabuto and Dr. Genus, the man responsible for the creation of the House of Evolution, my master finally explained to me the source of his immeasurable power: 100 pushups, 100 sit-ups, 100 squats, and a 10 kilometer run."

The room stayed deathly quiet. Everyone stared at each other, observing the looks on the other's faces to see if they heard him correctly. They did. 20 seconds of this silence went by, and Sitch was the first to break it. "Is that a joke? Come on, this is a serious situation! I thought you of all people would know that."

Saitama pinched the bridge of his nose. Why didn't anybody believe him with this? "Then you try to do all that shit in one day without ever having exercised before in your life! You go out and do all those exercises without stopping for a single break, then go to your home in the scorching heat or subzero temperature without turning on your heater or air conditioner! For god's sake, I was coughing up blood! Most nights, I felt like my muscles were gonna pop like pimples from how sore they were! It was living hell!"

"I understand you're skepticism. I too responded in the same manner when I was told, but whether you believe it or not, my master's power is real. But let's get back on topic. Carnage Kabuto was dissatisfied with this answer as well, and in anger, he transformed into his most powerful state. But like the insect he was, it proved to be ultimately useless, and he was eradicated in a single punch.

"Then, as you all might know, the meteor that almost struck City Z. Bofoi, you were there for the occasion."

Everyone turned to Bofoi, who was tapping the counter with a pen. The realization that everyone was waiting for him to speak struck, and he dropped his pen. "Ah yes. Well, in this particular situation, I can personally vouch for the B-class hero. I remember that my missiles were ineffective, but since I didn't stick around to see the finale, I went with what the media and assumed my missiles did a majority of the work, with Genos helping move it along."

The teenage cyborg shook his head. "No. That was my master. He obliterated the meteorite in a single punch.

"There were many other threats that sensei defeated, including as you know the Deep Sea King, but from what you've heard, you don't need to hear me regaling the story knowing what the punch line will be. Now for the extraterrestrial band of pirates. I'm afraid I have no more knowledge of the events that occurred than the rest of you, so master, if you would please tell us exactly what happened that day."

Saitama set down his cup of coffee. "Guess I'm up. I'll try to be as descriptive as I can, but I don't know if you're gonna like it."

"Just tell us."

"Ok. You remember I was here at the last meeting, right?" Sitch nodded in confirmation. He asked for a cup of tea, and all of the S-class heroes ignored him, as one would expect with their overconfident attitudes. "As soon as the spaceship came, I jumped through your roof to fight the aliens. Then, they started firing a bunch of bullets that were just plain annoying. Once those were out of the way, I entered the ship and started killing all of the soldiers who attacked me."

"Were there any particularly powerful warriors?"

Saitama stroked an imaginary beard. "Hard to say. Since I'm too strong, no fighters are really "powerful" for me, but if I had to take a guess… There was this really big green guy with jaws for hands and a face that said he could spit acid. I needed to use slightly more force than usual, and a stupid blue octopus that had some weak psychic abilities. Those were about the only two mildly different guys I fought. But that was until I met the leader of the pirate band."

Everyone shifted to the edges of their seats, waiting for Saitama like the climax of a movie. "Do you remember his name?"

"I'm pretty sure if I remember, it was Boros." Since he was the strongest guy he faced so far, he made an exception for remembering his name.

"What did he look like?" said Sitch.

"He was like a tall, blue Cyclops with really spiky pink hair and pointed armor with a gold texture. Anyway, he rambled on and on about how he was he the denominator of the universe, and how he heard of this prophesy where he would find a warrior who could match his power on Earth. After all that was through and done, I punched him to shut him up. But to my surprise, he was still alive.

"We exchanged a lot of blows, and for the most part he was doing pretty good in comparison to the other guys I've fought. Then he transformed to an even more powerful state. His hair grew really long, and he was pink all over. He actually managed to kick me to one of the four moons in orbit. Lucky for me, I used my SUPER Serious Jump and made it back in one piece."

"To the moon? Are you joking?" said an unconvinced Sitch.

"Hold on a minute…" said Bofoi. He clicked rapidly on the touch screen panel, and a blue holographic image flashed to life. "I remember reading an article by NASA that stated there was a large impact that fractured the surface of our moon. It was ridiculous because the crater created from the impact was almost as wide as the crater the meteorite that almost struck City Z would have formed. Even odder, the crater formed on the lit side of the moon, meaning that it couldn't have been some asteroid because the trajectory originated from Earth. And now that I think about it..." Bofoi slid the hologram down and pulled up a new screen, this one with a large cloud formation split in two. "There was an unknown force that split this cloud formation that spanned hundreds of miles out into the ocean, and it was formed exactly the same day those Space Pirates invaded." Things were starting to look more and more in favor of Genos' testimony. He had no other rational explanation for it. There was no way his rockets could make it such a distance and cause that much impact, and he was the smartest weapons developer on the planet, exceeded by none. And he was certainly no meteorologist of any sort, so he had no other explanation for such an odd cloud formation.

"So can we cut the sciency mumbo jumbo and get back to what I was saying? Seriously, I don't think I've spoken this long in my life!"

"We apologize. Please continue."

"Once I made it back to the ship, I attacked him with my consecutive normal punches. He fought back with a energy blast, I used my serious punch, yadaydayada, bottom line, I won."

Silence. Saitama picked up his cup of coffee and slurped it down, the coffee releasing dopamine throughout his entire body. "Well?!" said Minister Sitch.

"Well what?" said Saitama. He told him everything he knew; it sounded from him like he forgot something important.

"WHAT DO YOU MEAN WHAT?! WHAT ABOUT THE INFORMATION ABOUT THE PROPHECY?!"

"Oh YEA! Goddamn, it just isn't enough for you guys! Ummm…" He snapped his fingers several times, trying to recall his vision. "That Nappa guy basically said everything you need to know. This Frieza guy is coming. He's really powerful. But I guess I could tell you about the sort of dreamlike vision I had earlier this morning."

"A dream?" said Bofoi with a curious tone.

"Some weird boney fleshy skeleton brought me to some sort of magical dimension. Apparently, he said Freezer's on a completely different level than Boros. It's got me pretty pumped up."

"PUMPED UP?!" Sitch shot up from his seat and marched to Saitama. "A WARRIOR WHO IS ON A COMPLETELY DIFFERENT LEVEL OF THE LEADER OF THE SPACE PIRATES BAND WHO WAS STILL MORE POWERFUL THAN MELZARGARD, A MONSTER WHO TOOK 4 S-CLASS HEROES TO DEFEAT, IS COMING TO INVADE OUR PLANET, AND YOU'RE PUMPED UP?! NOT TO MENTION THAT PSYCHO GAROU WHO IS ON THE LOOSE HUNTING HEROES!"

"Garou? Hero Hunter?" said Saitama.

Sitch sighed. "Yes. Just this morning, a human by the name of Garou attacked a group of criminals and 3 A-class heroes who were all present at an underground meeting."

"What exactly do you mean by underground meeting?" said Genos. Genos had seen the aftermath of the battle, but neither Sitch nor Agoni had told him exactly what all those convicts were doing gathered in one place.

"Alright. You told me everything you know, so it's only fair that I extend to you that courtesy as well." Sitch walked back to his chair and plopped himself down on the chair. He covered his eyes, ashamed of what he was about to tell Demon Cyborg. "The president and I had agreed on a secret meeting with all of the criminals who were working in the underbellies of our society." Sitch exchanged looks with Agoni.

Agoni continued the explanation. "After a long talk, Sitch and I finally decided to call these criminals together to..." Agoni heaved his chest in and out. "To enlist their help in our fight against mysterious beings."

"WHAT?!"

"Not cool man!"

"Why would you do something as desperate as that?"

These comments of disbelief were spewing out of the hero's mouthes. Why they would do something as desperate and low as recruiting criminals, they hadn't the foggiest idea.

"Look, I understand your anger," said Sitch. "But we don't have enough manpower to deal with all of these threats. Demon Cyborg, surely you've noticed the rising number of monsters you've had to fight in these past few weeks."

Genos stiffened. "Yes, I have."

"There simply aren't enough powerful A-class and S-class heroes to deal with all of these threats. And now, with this human hero hunter, things have only gotten worse. You didn't see what I saw. All of the heroes AND criminals alike. They charged at him, but he was able to expertly outmaneuver them and beat them in a single strike. Even the 3 A-class heroes, who would most likely be at S-class if it wasn't for Sweet Mask, stood no chance. So pardon me if I'm a little skeptical in your abilities."

Saitama scrunched his brows. "Nobody can beat me. This Freezer guy is going down, no matter what. Same goes for this hero hunter. I'll kick every monster's ass that comes my way."

"Oh really? If you're so confident, would you please display some of your power like you said?"

"Gladly," said Saitama with a snarky attitude. The softer side of him who was willing to just let people think what they wanted was done. He was tired of being pushed around like garbage and his word being doubted. He deserved at least basic human respect from the city and these guys.

"I suggest a desolate area barren of life so no civilian lives are at risk," said Genos, who was the only one in the room who knew full well how dangerous Saitama's attacks could be.

"Well then lets go."

* * *

Twenty thousand. He was staring listlessly at his hands. That was exactly how many times he had twiddled his fingers around like a spinning wheel. They were the only parts of his body that he could move without triggering the overwhelming flow of pain threatening to rise from his exhausted muscles.

He couldn't believe that a saiyan such as him would be damaged to this extremity. All he had managed to do was flex his fingers and twist his feet to his right and left. He had no idea how long it had been since his beating. The Caped Bastard's Ferris wheel of death utterly warped his sense of time. It could have been two weeks, two months, two years; he had no fucking idea. Damn it, he should have asked how long he had been in here.

The obsidian black square room reflected back all of the negative, churning emotions going through Nappa, but at that moment, more than anything, he was feeling an extreme tedium. Boredom. After they left, he thought he would pass the time by imagining all the ways he would kill Vegeta, from ripping his spine out to blasting a hole in his chest. But the melancholic and somber room sucked even the most gruesome of thoughts and enjoyment out of these thoughts like a spider sucking the blood out of its victim.

"I would do fucking anything for some entertainment."

"Uhhhh…" His eyes widened as he heard the moans of a certain prisoner reverberate through the black box. "Shit! I take it back! I TAKE IT BACK!" The speedy little prick was waking up. This was karma punishing him.

The speedy little prick was in a disoriented state, his eyes drooping from the terrible quality sleep he must have gotten. They removed all of his toys, so he doubted he could do any serious damage to him, given that the only physical attack he used was a pathetically weak spinning kick that he caught with only his hand.

Sonic rubbed his eyes and yawned like a child who just woke up from a midday nap. He started surveying the surrounding area, and the situation he was in and where he was slowly starting to sink in, along with the disheartening and morale crushing memory of his defeat. Sonic grimaced. He must have been retrieved by the authorities and placed in a more advanced holding cell to ensure he wouldn't escape like he did before.

It didn't matter anyway. He felt like his entire body was mush, so escape was out of the question. Not only that, but the room he was in was a solid black square holding cell, with no signs of life inside…

"Hey!" Sonic's eyes widened as big as flying saucers; sitting just 10 feet away from him, slouched against the wall was the same overgrown mongrel who kicked his ass. He reflexively reached for his kunai, but instead he was grabbing nothing but air. He sighed. Of course his weapons were confiscated from him. What did he expect? But if he didn't have any weapons, and he was in this decrepit state, that would mean…

"You're probably thinking that without your little toys I could pulverize you. Hate to tell you, but that's not gonna be happening today. Much as I would like to open up on you a can of ass whopping like I did before, I'm feeling just as shitty as you must be feeling right now."

"What the hell are you talking about?"

Nappa scowled. "While you were taking your mid-morning nap, some pretty big stuff went down."

The ninja pushed his back against the wall. "What do you mean?"

"Like I'll tell your scrawny chicken ass what happened!" The saiyan general slapped his forehead. "How did I get sucked into this mess? I'm cellmate with a wannabe ninja prick…"

"Oh, and you think this is the peachy end of the week ending I envisioned? Now that I have the time, I think I'll take a guess at who beat you, and if I had to guess…" Sonic tapped his feet on the ground and smiled like he was a game show host, interviewing the contenders. Nappa loathed it. "I'd say that Saitama was the one who slew you."

Nappa turned, utterly shocked he found that out on his first guess. "How did you know that?"

Sonic's condescending smile faded. "Lets just say I've had several run ins with him. And besides, there's nobody I know who's stronger than me. Well him and…" Sonic stopped himself. Dwelling on that time wasn't going to help him at all.

"Whatever," said Nappa, still seething with anger at this new living arrangement. If he had the luxury of a healing pod, he could be fixed up in no less than a few hours, but even if this primitive planet had that kind of technology, which he highly doubted, there was no way in a million years he could ever get access to it. "Just keep your mouth shut, and we might get through this without slashing each others throats out."

Sonic sneered. "First smart thing you've said since I met you."

"Well since I'm here…" Mustering whatever strength he had, he pushed himself off the ground and with immense difficulty, walked to the right corner of the room where the bunk beds were.

"I call top bunk," said Sonic with a slight smirk.

"Whatever. The top bunk's for pussies anyway." He sighed in defeat. This was going to be fun…

* * *

"Alrighty then. Here we are." Deep in a barren wasteland devoid of any life for miles around, Saitama and the rest of the group had just arrived, with one of Metal Knight's larger drones being used as transport. Genos soaked in the surrounding. This was no ordinary valley. No, this was the last place where Master Saitama and him did battle, and although the others did not know it, that gargantuan canyon that cut through the earth was created from Master Saitama's phenomenal punch. He simply told Dr. Kuseno and Bofoi the coordinates, and they were here in no time flat. "This was the area in which me and sensei did battle. That large canyon was created from Master Saitama's punch."

"Of course it was," said Bofoi. Frankly at this point, he already believed that Saitama was inhumanely strong, but right now all he wanted to do was go back to his lab and start analyzing the extraterrestrial technology. Instead, he got roped into watching this pretentious spectacle. Groans.

Genos, on the other hand, was elated. "Finally, Master Saitama will get the credit he will deserve."

The wind roared through the desolate land, as if it was quivering in fear at the return of the seemingly unstoppable. Sitch and the other elderly scientists shivered, blowing and rubbing their hands together for warmth. "Why did it have to be so windy today?"

"Really? This is like a warm summer breeze for me," said Saitama. "Guess all that time in my apartment during wintertime without the heater really helped adjust."

"Can we just get on with the demonstration?" said an aggravated Sitch. "Just do something, anything to see if the you're able to live up to the grandiose name Demon Cyborg has created."

"Then lets do this." Saitama rubbed his hands together, his red gloves preparing to weave some unbelievable magic. "I've been working on this one for a while, but I've never gotten around to actually using it. Genos, everybody, stand back."

Genos spread his arms out and pushed the men about 100 feet away. This was going to get intense.

Saitama took a deep breath in, then exhaled. His baldhead glistened in the afternoon sun, slowly setting down for the day, and his face-hardened into stone.

"Killer Move Serious Series: Serious Chops."

Gasps.

Sitch, Bofoi, and Dr. Kuseno could not believe their eyes. All Saitama was doing was merely chopping at the air, yet it was phenomenal. The power from Saitama's chops was creating vast gusts of wind, clouding the rock formations and preventing them from seeing just exactly what Saitama was doing.

Although they could not see it, Saitama was smirking in delight. "Let's see that guy second-guessing me now." This was going to be by far his best serious move, ranking just a tad bit higher than his Serious Spin.

After about 30 seconds ticked by, the sound of rapid chopping began to wane, and the dust clouds started to clear, making way for Saitama's grand masterpiece.

"Well, here it is." The spectators looked on in extreme marvel at what Saitama had crafted. With the effective and deadly force from his midair attacks, he carved several markings into the canyon, with a very edgy and finite manner in its structure. Engraved in the rock was the word Toyama.

Dr. Kuseno arched his eyebrow in confusion. "What significance does the word hold to you?"

"That was the name of the draper who donned me this suit. He was the only one who supported my dream to be a hero during my training here. You guys probably think that it looks really stupid, and truth be told, I used to wear my tracksuit over it for the first few months until I got comfortable enough to be seen in public with it. It's the only memento I have of him, and besides my television and my apartment, it's the most important thing I own. He fixes up my uniform and tailors it whenever I ask, so it's been really helpful. I guess it'd be pretty hard for you to understand."

"It looks rather ludicrous to me." Said Bofoi. Dr. Kuseno gazed at his brother with an incremental look. "What? You don't think it looks like a mentally unfit version of Superman's guise? No offense, but the only thing missing is a logo on the center of your chest."

Saitama shrugged his shoulders. "Meh. Not the worst thing a persons called me."

"Unbelievable." Minister Sitch was in a self-imposed daze. If what he saw was real, then he had to assume that everything Demon Cyborg and Saitama was true as well. He was just shown a feat of astronomical proportions, something he had not seen even the mightiest of S-class heroes pull off. How could he be so careless? How could he be so blinded, disoriented and caught up in the looks and reputation of the candidates rather than the inner strength, resilience, and the soul that was behind their looks and status?

Here was a man, a hero who could have just as easily taken credit for the numerous victories he attained over the years and moved up the rankings to the upper S-class, but instead, chose to hand the credit over to the heroes who were defeated in battle. He both heard and read on the news about Saitama's words that made him sound like he simply took the final blow after all the work the other heroes did to wear Deep Sea King down, but it was only now that he understood he only did that to give respect to the fallen combatants. What he saw in this B-class hero was an honest, noble man, who trained for years to attain the power to defeat the monsters that threatened to eliminate humanity and did so without even the slightest desire of fame and glory.

He filed toward Saitama with hunched arms and a slouched head, finally admitting the truth he was so ignorant of seeing. "Saitama, I…" Sitch struggled to find the right words that would amend for his ignorance, but he could think of nothing that could make up for what he had done. "I am so, so sorry for having you placed in the lowest ranking in the C-class." He bowed his head in respect and shame. "All this time, I neglected to elevate you to a higher Hero ranking, even though the evidence was right in front of me. I am truly ashamed to have doubted your word."

Saitama let out a nervous chuckle. "It's no problem." Now that he was apologizing in front of him, the frustration he was feeling quickly flowed out of him. "I'm sorry if I got pissed at you. Don't know what came over me."

"No, you were entitled to it." Sitch moved his head back up and was at eye level with Saitama. "Well I'm no longer going to let you be ignored for your heroic actions. I am going to shoot you straight up from B-class, past A-class, and all the way to S-class Rank 4, if that's all right with you. I would place you in S-class, rank 1, but I wouldn't want Blast or Tornado destroying the Hero Association headquarters in rage, and Bang was one of the first ones to join the Hero Association, so I think it would be fair for him to keep his current ranking. But if you want, I can switch it around-"

Sitch's voice wavered and faded when Saitama started whooping in the air and shouting triumphant, chanting incoherent mixtures of "Fuck Yes!", "Finally!", and "Yea Baby!"

Saitama turned to Sitch with his face flustering with joy and his body tingling with excitement. "No no no, it's fine. But S-class, Rank 4?! That's fucking unbelievable! Thank you so much man!" Saitama grasped Sitch's hand and shook it rigorously just as he had done with Dr. Kuseno. Sitch gladly returned the handshake, content to see Saitama so happy. More than that, he was happy to know that there was someone noble and powerful enough to stop Garou and the Devil of Frost from unraveling the fabric of their society. "And another change I'd like to make is your name. Caped Baldy is much too disrespectful to a man such as you. So instead, how about… One Punch Man?"

Saitama hardily laughed in agreement. "YES! OH MY GOD YES! AND YOU CAME UP WITH IT ON THE SPOT LIKE THAT?! FREAKING SWEET! YOU'RE A GENIUS!"

Genos watched his master's display of happiness and relief, feeling it catching onto him as well. He didn't think he ever saw his master this happy for two days in a row. Genos beamed in delight. At long last, Master Saitama could be viewed as the noble hero he was. Things were finally starting to turn around.

* * *

 _I have only one thing to say:_

 _#RespectForGroribas!_

 _Until Chapter 11!_


	11. Mother Earth's Apostle

_Chapter 11 is up! I've hit over 20,000 views, and I couldn't have done it without your views, so thanks a lot for your attention guys!_

 _Another warning: Some more Webcomic Spoilers! So for hardcore manga readers, stop being so stubborn and read the webcomic. Also, I'm going to be use a lot of information from the manga, so there are going to be a lot of events that already happened that I'll vaguely introduce. And I'll slightly alter some of the manga events as well._

 _In this one, you won't be seeing as much Saitama, and you'll even get to see a little backstory on the mysterious doctors. But for some, sad to say that there's going to be next to no fighting, so if you don't like background stories, you might want to skim through this one. Enjoy!_

* * *

Things were transgressing very quickly after Saitama's promotion to S-class.

As soon as they were done with the confectionary display, Bofoi hurriedly forced all of them back on the drone. In fact, he was so ready to leave the sight that he actually left Saitama behind. Although all of them knew that the drone was only slowing him down, and this was proven to be right, for as soon as the rest of the group reentered Bofoi's laboratory, they saw Saitama calmly drinking a glass of lemonade and even snacking himself on the bag of pretzels secretly stowed away in one of the kitchen cabinets.

"You know Stitch, I might just come down here more often. You've got some pretty awesome snacks here."

"ENOUGH WITH THIS POPPYCOCK!" said an angered Bofoi. They had wasted enough with this useless malarkey; all he cared about was integrating the alien technology into his own missile system, and things like who deserves the credit for defeating mysterious beings, or how tasty his coffee, the lemonade, or the pretzels are. This was completely irrelevant. "Saitama! Move yourself to the testing site and immediately get prepared for testing!"

"Alright Alright! Relax! I'm going…" Saitama promptly rose up from his seat and walked to the nearest door in the laboratory.

"Does he even know where he's going?" said Dr. Kuseno.

Bofoi covered his eyes with his hands in disappointment and irritation. "No. No he doesn't…"

"Hey how come there's a bed in here? You want me to nap in here? Because that sounds like it's around my ballpark."

"You're in the wrong room!" shouted Bofoi.

"Oh…" Saitama perked his hand out of the door. "My bad. Sooo… Where do I go?"

Bofoi snapped his finger to his right, his hand still covering his left eye. "There."

"Cool." With a casual stride, Saitama walked into Bofoi's hamster ball, knowing full well that today, Saitama was the hamster.

"Brother!"

"Yes?" Dr. Kuseno was sitting on Bofoi's chair, with Genos standing right beside him, staring at Metal Knight's computer monitors.

"Login into my computer system, pull up the files on all of the notes I've taken so far on the pod, and get yourself affiliated with my work. I expect you to be completely up to speed by the time I'm finished with my tests."

"Will do."

"I also want you to uplink my system with your computer's database and download all of the information you've obtained so far on that scouter you retrieved."

Dr. Kuseno hunched uncomfortably, something that his older brother took notice of. He always scrunched in that same position whenever he was caught in a lie. "Is there a problem with that?"

Despite the dangers they were in, Dr. Kuseno was still having a difficult time reinstating the trust he lost in Bofoi all those years ago? Could he really trust his brother with this information?

He stiffened. This was beyond petty squabbles. In order for this to work, they would need to know everything. "No. Not at all."

"And Sitch!"

The minister was quietly waiting beside the door, his eyes staring at the floor, seeing if the heroes needed anything else. "Yes Metal Knight?"

"Call my former assistant into the lab. Don't go into details; just tell him the bare necessities. My brother will get him up to speed on everything we've learned so far."

"I'll do so right away!" And like that, Sitch scurried off like a paperboy leaving from the Post Office to deliver his papers. "Now that that's all said and done, I can finally get down to business."

"One thing brother."

Bofoi groaned. "What?" He turned to his brother, and he was taken aback at his iron-hardened eyes.

"Trust is a two way streak. In order to work properly, you and I can't keep secrets from each other. Can you manage that?"

For a moment, both brothers remained silent, staring at each other just as they had done a few hours ago, their eyes stalking the other's to see what they were thinking. Genos took this in with deep fascination and slight worry. 'This must be asking a lot from Bofoi,' thought Genos to himself.

After an eternity of silence, Metal Knight let out a slight chuckle. "Ok brother. We'll work together, side-by-side just like the old days. Oh, and the login password is on my desk." Those were his last words before he strode into the lab to prepare to examine his phenomenal specimen.

Sweat beads were already beginning to fall down Dr. Kuseno's face, and he hadn't even started working. Hopefully, his brother's note taking wasn't as abysmal as it was during their adolescence, or else Dr. Kuseno would have no chance of learning anything about the space pod.

The doctor swerved into the roller seat. But when he saw the password written on the paper, he frowned.

"What is the problem?" said Genos.

"VERY FUNNY BROTHER! IT'S NOT EVEN CLEVER!" Bofoi let out a hardy chorus of laughter.

"What?"

Dr. Kuseno sighed and gave Genos the paper. Genos let out a slight gasp. "Pooseno?"

"Yes. Now you see how immature my brother can be." Dr. Kuseno typed in the passcode, and the screens flared to life. "Genos. Would you mind pulling up a seat and accompanying me?"

"Of course doctor." Genos briskly pulled up one of the wooden chairs and sat on the doctor's right-hand side. "It will be just like 4 years ago, when I was showing you your schematics."

Genos smiled. "Yes it will Doctor."

So the seconds ran by. Seconds became minutes, and Genos patted his hands on his lap and watched the doctor carefully reading the notes Metal Knight had already taken, as well as a few model sketches of what Bofoi had managed to confidently determine about the pod. But there were still some important he wanted to ask Dr. Kuseno, and he could think of no better time to ask then now.

"Dr. Kuseno, there's something I am very curious to know."

"Oh?"

"Now I understand why you this topic would be uncomfortable for you, but it's something I must know."

Dr. Kuseno arched his eyebrow. "Ok?

"What happened with you and Bofoi?"

Dr. Kuseno's fingers stopped clicking on the keyboard. Dr. Kuseno did not look at Genos, but stared solely at the white monitor screens placed above the central computer monitor. "Why…" said Dr. Kuseno, his tone unusually somber, "do you want to know?"

"The way you speak to Bofoi, you sound spited, enraged, and almost disgusted to be in his presence. I've never seen you so filled with hatred, and I want to know why."

Genos laid his hand on the doctor's shoulder. "You were there for me in the darkest of times. You helped me progress through the worst of times and helped me understand myself better than ever before. Let me do the same for you. Please."

Silence, and still Dr. Kuseno did not move an inch. If Genos still had a functioning heart, it would have tightened. Did he go too far? Did he upset the doctor?

The doctor sighed in acceptance. "You're right Genos. You deserve to know what happened between Bofoi and me, and exactly what my "

Genos let out a sigh of relief and proceeded to let go of the doctor's shoulder. "Thank you doctor."

Dr. Kuseno spun his seat around, and sat in comfort as he prepared to tell Genos his childhood like a grandfather regaling his story to his circle of grandchildren. "I suggest you get comfortable, because this will take some time."

"It all goes back to my earliest memories of childhood. Back in those days, Bofoi and I were almost inseparable. As children, we would often stay indoors, regularly constructing Lego sets or playing on our advanced gaming systems. Luckily for us, we were rather opulent. Not like millionaires, but one could say we were close to that marker, and as such, my brother and I always had the pleasure of being entertained.

"My mother worked as a mechanical engineer and created both computer and weapons systems for the government. My father worked as a biomedical and medical engineer, testing new machinery to help hospital patients in critical care such as cancer patients.

"Both Bofoi and I were absolutely fascinated with our parents work. It might be rather cliché, but both of us wanted to follow in our parent's footsteps. Ever since I can remember, my mother and father would show us prototypes of their earliest models; they even let us look at the blueprints. Both of us would constantly pester and pester our parents, asking them when we could go visit their workplace. It was only at the age of 10 that we were first able to tour the facility in which they worked.

"For the two of us, it was like a magic wonderland. We explored every area we could with our parents, surveyed the manufacturing lines in which the machinery was assembled, looked through our parents offices, which were coincidentally next to each other thanks to the kindness of their head supervisor, and best of all, got to see the laboratories where my mother and father each individually worked.

"From that day forward, our brotherly bond was only strengthened. We upgraded from building Lego pieces to tinkering with spare parts from our mother and father's unfinished models.

"Now, it was when we were 16 that we really put our technological prowess to the test. In our private school, we began working on creating robots. With my knowledge on optic controls, code encryption, sensory systems and Bofoi's expertise on robotic maneuverability, robotic systems, and the general exoskeleton frame, we could create astounding robots. We often participated in statewide tournaments. We'd win every single time thanks to my coding skills and Bofoi's superb weaponry and maneuverability he would equip. At the end of the finals, our father would give us both warm hugs, and my mother gave us a list of all of the inconsistencies in our work after warmly embracing us.

"After graduating from high school, we went to very prestigious college in C-City. Both of us did. We just worked together better, like a dynamic duo. After graduating, we worked in the same company our parents did. At the time, they were already retired, so we didn't work aside them. But we started growing restless, our ambitions becoming greater and greater. We wanted to be free to create our own inventions, get whatever resources we looked without approval from our superiors. That was when Bofoi suggested to me that we create our own company. I thought it was crazy. Neither one of us knew a single thing about managing a company. But that didn't stop Bofoi. I remember what he said to me: "I'll do anything it takes in the name of Scientific Evolution."

"It was only until years later I would understand what he meant. Although we never got in the prospect of managing our own company, we were still able to accomplish a considerable amount or projects on our own free time. To me, it was amazing. Bofoi was able to bring in a constant stream of income for the both of us, not including the income we received from our jobs. However, one day, I came upon some very sketchy composite sketches of missiles.

"While on one hand, I would occasionally tinker in that area with Bofoi and create a few models ever now and then, these designs were much larger in comparison, with many more explosive materials than one would expect. I then recalled that Bofoi would leave work for a few days ever 3 weeks or so, and never told me what he would do during these periods of time. This was a very strange conundrum, and too odd to be just a mere coincidence. So I decided to follow Bofoi on one of his outings.

"For the oddest reason, Bofoi went to a very barren desert in City L. There weren't any signs of life for miles. Just miles of mountains and deserts spanning in all directions. To make sure I wouldn't be seen, I kept a distance of about a few miles from the black jeep Bofoi was driving in. He kept on travelling through this desert by car for about thirty miles. He finally stopped around the 35th miles, in front of a dimly lit, very run down area filled with concrete houses and men with large guns. I was able to watch him by using a highly advanced scope lens I developed just for the occasion. Bofoi got out of the car and walked out to meet a man with rags for clothing. I looked to my right, and saw large crates being moved by a crane. Bofoi was receiving a large briefcase of money from this man, with smiles on both of their faces. But then the pieces finally started coming together. I didn't want to believe it, I kept trying to think of any other possible explanations, but only one was firmly set in my heart: Bofoi was selling weapons to terrorists.

"I can't quite remember what I did next. All I remember was that I drove off into the night sky, my hands clenched to the steering wheel as hard as I could, like I was trying to choke the life out of it to relieve my internal pain and anguish.

"I took a plane and went back home. I didn't have the heart to tell my parents about what I had discovered, and the only thing that could help ease the stress was being around. The only thing I could do was confronting Bofoi about this double life. One day later, his head came peering through my laboratory door, looking happier then ever. However, that smile faded when he saw those feelings weren't reciprocated. Even 30 years later, I can still remember exactly how that confrontation went.

* * *

 _"Why?"_

 _Bofoi gave him a questioning look. "Why what?"_

 _"Why would you lie to me? Do business behind my back?" Bofoi's neutral face scrunched, both shocked and stuck as to how he figured it out, and what he would say to him. "What did you see?" was the first thing that Bofoi could think of saying._

 _"I followed you after I saw some of your missile schematics. How could you do this?" Dr. Kuseno shot up from his chair. "Why would you sell weapons to terrorists for profit?"_

 _"I'm not the one who does the illegal activities," protested Bofoi, determined to prove his side right. "All I did was give them the weapons to do so. It's merely conducting business."_

 _"SELLING WEAPONS IS THE SAME AS PULLING THE TRIGGER YOURSELF!" shouted Dr. Kuseno._

 _"It's also the same as not firing it at all," said Bofoi, his voice still evenly toned. "If those terrorists want to terrorize society, there isn't a lot anybody can do to stop them. Think about everything we've accomplished." Bofoi grasped his little brother's shoulders. "Look at everything we've been able to achieve since graduating. You've actually managed to create prototypes of prosthetic limbs. Think about how many lives that could be saved with that. Not only that, but with my newly improved weapons system, no citizen will have to worry about threats from those terrorists or mysterious beings. By the time those terrorists will use those missiles I traded them, I'll have created an entirely different arsenal that could knock those archaic tin toys out of the sky! Brother, together, we could become the greatest scientific minds in history. Who cares about the few lives that could possibly be snuffed when we can not only help thousands of people, but also advance our technological bounds to unprecedented heights?"_

 _The room stood deathly silent. The electronic fans spun in the room, and even the tick tocks of the clock reverberated across the cement walls. Bofoi was staring into the eyes of his little brother, hoping that he could agree with his ideals. He wanted him by his side. They had been through so much together, and if he were being honest with himself, it would have taken a much longer time to achieve this level of technological prowess without his support. Little did he know that this was what was running through his little brother's mind as well. The two sides of Dr. Kusenos mind were battling with each other. What should he do? Should he allow this to continue, to work beside his brother knowing they were funding their research with blood money? Or should he walk out of the room right now, severing the bond they spent years developing? What would he do?_

 _The tension tightened. Bofoi's heart constricted as his brother brushed his hands off of his shoulders with inhuman strength and walked to the door. Bofoi wasn't sure what he was feeling right now. His brother was betraying him. Abandoning their bond in exchange for minute, miniscule morals that barely mattered in the grand scheme of things._

 _Something changed. Something in Bofoi's heart darkened, turned an ugly shade of black. His eyes went from warm and filled with life to cold and analytical. His saddened face turned into unmovable concrete. He scoffed. "Very well brother. You've made your choice, and I've made mine. I just didn't expect you to be so weak on the inside."_

 _Dr. Kuseno placed his hand on the door, and turned to meet his brother's gaze. "I didn't spend all those years learning to help people just to stab them in the back. I won't stop you brother. All I can say is that I hope you do well in your ventures. Goodbye brother."_

 _"Farwell, little brother."_

* * *

"And that was the end of our brotherly partnership. I vowed from that day on to never have my technology be used to hurt the innocent. It was only 10years later that we would be reunited at our parent's funeral. The most we exchanged was some pleasantries."

"And how long ago was that?"

"30 years ago." Dr. Kuseno sighed. "So now you know."

Genos sat in a self imposed state of awe and somberness. He placed his hand on the doctor's shoulder once more. "I'm so sorry doctor. I can only imagine how hard it must have been for you, staying away from your brother for decades on end."

"Well, there's no use dwelling on the past." Genos shook Geno's hand off his shoulder and began rapidly typing on the computer, resuming his work. "All that matters is finishing our work and saving humanity. This minutia is water over the bridge. Say, do me a favor and get me some of those pretzels Saitama was talking about?"

"Ok…" Genos uneasily got up from his seat and slowly walked over to the door. He gave one last sorrowful look at the good doctor before leaving him to his work. But in an instance, he was jostled and pushed to the side by a child. The child frantically entered the room, turning and observing the laboratory. When his eyes caught the space pod, he slapped both of his hands against his cheeks and gasped in excitement. "HOLY MOLY!"

"Wait a minute..." Genos recognized that face at the last S-class meeting. The youngest hero registered in the Hero Association. S-class, Rank 5: Child Emperor himself. The 10 year old child eyed the ship, looking at it through every different angle he could, banging on the surface of the ship's exterior as he did so.

"Ah. You must be Child Emperor." Dr. Kuseno walked up to the child, who eyed him with an air of confusion and suspicion. "And just who are you?"

"I'm Bofoi's younger brother." Child Emperor's eyes widened. "Really? Bofoi never talked about his family while I was working under him."

"Understandable. My namd is Dr. Kuseno, and I must say, your jovial attitude reminds me of myself when I was your age." Child Emperor nodded. "It's just that I never thought I'd get to see such advanced alien technology up close." Child Emperor then noticed a red object in his right palm. "What is that device?"

Dr. Kuseno looked at the scouter and gave it to Child Emperor, who like Bofoi studied it in fascination. "This was one of the scouting devices that Genos, or Demon Cyborg as you might know him, retrieved from the battle site of the two dragon level mysterious beings that were defeated a week ago. It's able to detect the precise energy levels of any warrior."

Child Emperor smiled in delight. "A device that detects the energy level of warriors? I was tinkering with that same concept, but I was never able to get it into full swing!"

"If you would like, I'll show you everything me and Bofoi have uncovered about the alien technology so far," said Dr. Kuseno.

"WOULD I?!" And just like that, the two scientific geniuses had struck up an odd but strong bond. Genos let out a small smile. There was truly no other man like Dr. Kuseno except for master himself.

* * *

The stars twinkled in the night sky. The pine trees bustled with squirrels and birds poking their heads into the tree to feed their young. Just a few feet away, a man with a long disheveled black beard and hair laid on the bright red slide, staring at the sky. His life has taken a tumble down to the worst. He had just been fired from his new job from accusations of sexual harassment, even though his boss was the one who told him to start dancing naked at the new employee welcome party. With no income, he was forced out of his house, living with no family, no friends, and no roof to sleep under.

He chose to distance himself from society and to become a hermit. So to accommodate to his new life, he decided to sleep at a local park, where he could admire the vast beauty of nature. The obsidian night was truly a sight to behold, and the fresh summer breeze whistled through his hair, sending delightful chills through his body. So much of this beautiful and bountiful nature was being wrecked, torn up, and destroyed by the human race. This was more pleasurable than any house humans could build. The land was bigger than any building, the sky was brighter than any lighting, and his residence was larger than any other palace. It was the Earth itself.

The homeless man slowly slid back down the sky, and looked up into the star covered sky. The human race had deviated from the ecosystem that Mother Earth had built. The foolishness of the selfishly prospering humans was lead by only self-centered rulers. How could he have lowered himself to working for such selfish, gluttonous humans?

He gasped. He had reached an epiphany. In order to escape his horrendous, cramped, unfair world where more and more of nature was destroyed and raped every day, and to return to nature and achieve true unity with Mother Earth, death was his only alternative.

But suddenly, the Earth below him began to shake. The soft breeze quickly became relentless gusts of hurricane-like winds, and the pine trees began to sink back from where they came. The homeless man looked around in confusion and fear. Who or what was doing this?

His question was answered, as the gusts of wind began to twist around in very fast circular motions. Appearing from out of nowhere, clumps of flesh and bones began to fly toward the swirling vortex. Fear and panic began to grip his heart when he saw these random clumps taking form, taking the form of a faceless, hideous man made of flesh and bones.

The homeless man stood there motionless, the fear paralyzing his vocal cords and his legs. Once he regained his vocal cords and legs, he screamed and sprinted toward the opposite direction. He didn't want his life to end at the hands of a creature formed from a nightmare.

Without warning, his entire body froze midair. He struggled to break free, yet his body wasn't responding to what his brain was telling it to do. His whole body then made a 180-degree turn to face the creature once more. His body quivered at the sight of the abomination. He attempted to plea with the creature to spare his life, but his mouth was frozen just like the rest of his body.

"Quell your fears. I am not here to end your life. You are correct with your realizations. But you have no need to die. I will grant you the power to change this world for Mother Earth."

The man's eyebrows raised up, and he felt some of the nerves in his body loosen. "What do you mean?"

"What you said about the human race. This beautiful planet is being lead to ruin and chaos by those disgusting, voracious pigs, and the only way to keep this amazing planet in pristine condition is to eradicate every last one of them."

The man regained control of his body, but instead of running, he remained where he was, staring in fascination at the creature before him. He had no idea why, but he actually became curious as to who or what this being was. So, mustering all the courage he could, the man spoke. "Why do you detest the human race?"

The creature did not give an immediate response. When this happened, the man turned his head away and closed his eyes in fear, expecting some sort of punishment or pain, but to his surprise, nothing happened.

After a few seconds of silence, the creature's voice rang out. "Very well. Since you are the first human to have seen the light of truth, I will share with you the darkness of my past.

"Hundreds of years ago, there were 6 major clans that roamed the earth: The seafolk, the subterraneans, the lizard clan, the forest tribe, the underworlders, and the humans. A pseudo king ruled the Lizard Clan, while the Ancient King rested in a deep slumber. There were many smaller factions, but they were composed of a very small amount of individuals, and they ranged greatly. Each of these clans had maintained a truce and vowed to never engage in war or encroach on others territories. This truce was honored, and each clan maintained a peaceful and friendly relationship, living in tranquility and harmony. They understood how to live with the planet instead of on it, and each was content with their land. But there was one tribe that constantly desired more and more land, harming and destroying their environment: the humans. The human race was a disease, eating away at the Earth's life force, engulfed in their own hubris and gluttony for land. Your race's selfishness fractured a millennium of peace.

"It would have been difficult to believe a single clan could wipe out the other clans, but there was something the humans had learned that we didn't. They learned how to channel the energy in their bodies and exert it into powerful bursts of energy. With enough training, this power has the capacity to destroy an entire planet. Without warriors to combat them, they were practically like gods.

"We tried to stop it. The clans joined together and retaliated against your gluttonous conquest for land. Our forces were decimated. Thousands of good souls were vaporized in the blink of an eye, erased from existence by the energy waves of a dozen or even less human warriors. The clans were on the brink of extinction, and hope was a fleeting memory.

"I was an underworlder, a group of people who lived even lower than the Subterraneans. It was thanks to that that I was able to stay hidden from the humans. I researched for years, looking at our people's most ancient scrolls, trying to find anything that could help. But unfortunately for me, luck favors the prepared, and I was not quite prepared for a direct invasion on our homeland. In an instant, I, along with the rest of the remaining underworlders still alive, was met with an army of humans. I was overrun by human foot soldiers. I attempted to resist using my magic abilities, but their numbers overran me, and I was captured.

"Within a short time, I was brought before a council of humans. By that time, all 5 of the other clans had been so greatly reduced in numbers, that there were only a hundred at most per clan, possibly less. I refused to believe it, but in my heart, I knew they were right. So to ensure I would cause no more trouble, they banished me to this dimension using all the power they could conjure up, and this is where I've been ever since.

"But even after the war ended, the tribes' suffering did not end. This planet has a very unique and unusual energy at its core, which amplifies any physical, emotional, or psychological changes the inhabitants undergo. But negative emotions are almost always the catharsis for transformation, and very few if not any positive emotional or physical attributes will cause a change. The torment of the loss of their land and what little remained of their race had angered them. As years turned into decades, and decades turned into centuries, the tribes began to become bloodlust, fueled by the stories of the human's carnage, with the energy from the Earth's core only worsening their repugnant traits. While the clans recovered, I began harnessing the power of the magic lying dormant in the dimension I was imprisoned in. Using its power, I was able to put a powerful spell that was able to prevent warriors from channeling the energy in their bodies. I've learned that only through genetic inheritance and bone-shattering training can the spell be broken. While monsterfication will give a being the ability, the energy will not be nearly as potent as it would through rigorous training. However, the spell requires a great deal of energy to maintain, and its effects do not have the ability to hinder psychokinesis, a very different form of ki manipulation altogether, which has posed as a slight but not colossal problem. And now, finally, our time has come.

"After hundreds of years of wallowing in the dark, we can fight back against humanity, for an emperor of untold power is coming. A warrior of unrivaled power who can defeat anyone who stands in his way, no matter how strong they think to be. And we will be ready to support him and be there to topple the humans once and for all, restoring Mother Earth to its prime. Will you be a part of this noble quest?"

The man nodded with newfound jovial energy, eager to serve this noble cause. "Good. I trust you know what to do with this power." The skeleton creature pointed his finger at the man, and an immense surge rushed through his body. He could feel energy flowing throughout his entire body? Was such power even possible? It was a stupid question, as the pure energy in his body spoke for itself. "Before you depart, I will implant the location of the newly developing Monster Association into your mind. You will require their assistance if our dream is to become a reality, but you shall not be the leader. The Monster King is more powerful than you, even with your new power, and a power struggle will only cause incessant turmoil." The horrid creature held his chin down and gazed at the man before him. "We will meet again."

The surrounding area began to return back to how he remembered it, the trees growing out of the ground and the park scenery returning to how he remembered it. But just as everything was turning back to normal, the creature spoke once more. "And one more thing. If you fail me, your power and your life will be eradicated from existence." The man gulped and nodded. Then, in a flash, the creature disappeared. He surveyed the landscape to see anything out of place, but could fine nothing. So he looked at himself in the dim reflection of the metal slide to see if there were any wounds he acquired, but surprisingly, he noticed he was given some extra garments, one of them being a crown. He took the crown off of his head and examined it. It possessed pointed edges, and its pure gold color shimmered even in the black night. His ears picked up on a fluttering sound right behind him, so he turned around. Wrapped around his neck and flapping in the wind was a red cape. This must have been another gift from that creature. No, he wasn't a mere creature. There was only one word that could be used to describe a being able to bestow such power: God.

But these trivial costume changes were irrelevant to the absolute grandiose transformation he had just undergone. The man closed his eyes and focused the energy running through his body out to his hands. He opened his eyes and let out a gasp. At the tips of his fingertips were miniature suns, brightening everything around him. The homeless man then shot the two balls of energy straight into the lines of trees to test his newfound power. The trees exploded in a fiery inferno, as dust debris was being sent flying everywhere, prompting him to cover his eyes from the oncoming dust. When the smoke cleared, all that remained was smoke and tree trunks, the cackling of fire and ash fresh in the air.

The man stood in silence. 20 seconds passed by, and what came next was laughter. The man began laughing like he never had in his life. "This power is absolutely phenomenal! I have realized the legend, the dream in which God has desired for so long. Those pesky humans aren't dealing with the average warrior anymore. I have become: The Legendary Homeless Emperor! And after I'm done with humanity, God shall dance, and Mother Earth shall sing in harmony!" His energy spheres glistened in the night, and the Homeless Emperor's malicious laughs resonated across the land.

* * *

Deep underground, under many layers of rock formations, the newly forming Monster Association was beginning their assault on the human world. Sitting at the throne of the Monster Association was Orochi, the Monster King, and at his right hand was Gyoro Gyoro.

"We are two weeks away from amassing enough forces to begin our first phase of operation. Once we've rummaging the Earth for enough tiger & demon level monsters, we will have enough ground troops to invade all the human cities."

The Monster King Orochi stared at his apprentice with his usually serious demeanor. "I see. And you've made the preparations for the abductions?"

"Yes. We have made the necessary preparations to abduct not only the leader of the Hero Association's grandson, but also to have the three centipedes kidnap several of the Hero Association's investors, crippling their ability to function as a collective unit."

"What preparations have you made to recruit more monsters for Phase 2 of the operation?"

"Ah yes. To effectively promote more recruits, Gouketsu will travel to the Super Fight Tournament being hosted in two weeks, where the fighters will be given the option to consume the cells or die, and Nyan will go to the Smelly Lid Prison and have the prisoners consume the monster cells as well. Since most of them are already imprisoned by the humans police force, there is no doubt a huge percentage of them will choose to join us. And for those who do not, they will simply pay with their lives."

"Very well."

Gyoro Gyoro tapped his fingers nervously on the stone table. "Master, I've had a vision. A prophetical vision."

Orochi moved for the first time and reclined forward. Gyoro Gyoro had a very keen gift: the power of clairvoyance, coupled with psychokinesis. It was one of the driving reasons he was selected personally to be his right hand man. That, along with his rather impressive tactical skills, made him a very useful asset and worthy of being his second-in-command. However, he had never seen Gyoro Gyoro looking nervous like this. Whatever this was must have frightened him. "What did you see?"

"I saw-" Gyoro Gyoro swiftly turned his head, his senses picking up on a very powerful life form he had never sensed before entering through the Association's headquarters. "Someone is coming?"

"Who is it? Is it not Gouketsu or another one of our dragon level executive members you sense?" The one eyed monster shook its head. Before he had a chance to react, the doors violently broke open, revealing a human with fiery orbs at his fingertips and a crown on his head, along with the bodies of half a dozen other monsters laying lifelessly on the floor with large burns and blood all over their bodies.

The one eyed monster squinted its eye and prepared to attack the unidentified intruder, albeit some skepticism. "Who are you, human, and how did you get in here?" said Gyoro Gyoro.

"I am not here to fight. Although your minions couldn't quite grasp that and I was forced to eliminate them. I would like to become an executive member of your association."

This statement caught both Gyoro Gyoro and Orochi off guard. Orochi stared at him with curiosity. "But you are a human, no?" said Orochi. "You have the trappings of a human, not a monster. How did you gain this power without the consumption of a monster cell or a mysterious being transformation? In almost every monster transmutation, the consumer takes a very large or very small physical transformation depending on the raw material, but you do not seem inhuman in the slightest. Why is that?"

The man looked up at the monster that just spoke to him. There was absolutely no doubt in his mind that this was the leader of the Monster Association. His voice was deep and threatening, and his gargantuan size only added to the wave of authority that his frightening appearance displayed. Had he not already seen God, he would have begged for mercy and been immobilized with utter terror. "I was given the power by a divine entity. The entity told me that an immensely powerful warlord is coming to this planet."

"An immensely powerful warlord?" said Orochi.

"That was what I was about to tell you!" said Gyoro Gyoro, in shock that this unidentified warrior would know of the same vision. "In my vision, I saw a warlord of Frost floating in the atmosphere of a celestial body, staring face-to-face with a bloody and beaten warrior with jet black hair, along with thousands of other soldiers behind him. This warlord then prepared an energy blast nearly identical to the one this human can conjure, except it was one hundred times larger, and it destroyed the entire planet, along with every single soldier in its path! The most worrisome thing is that the frost demon didn't even appear worn out from it, as if destroying a planet was mere child's play!"

Orochi's face did not move an inch, his stoic demeanor still radiating control. But inside, his stomach churned and nigh invisible sweat drops fell down his face. Gyoro Gyoro's predictions were never wrong, and if this warlord was as powerful as he said…

He shook himself out of his worried state. "No matter. Whether it is true or not, we have several phenomenally powerful hand-to-hand combative monsters, and if he relies on energy blasts for offense, then that would mean he is physically inept. No one can stand up to the full force of the Monster Association and the Monster King himself. You." The Monster King pointed his finger at the unidentified intruder. "What is your name?"

"Homeless Emperor."

"Very well then. Homeless Emperor, you are hereby an executive member of the Monster Association. If and when this warlord arrives, I want you to accompany me to meet him, along with Black Sperm, Gouketsu, Gums, Evil Natural Water, Nyan, Fuhrer Ugly, and Gyoro Gyoro. We will show this emperor the full might of the Monster Association, and when he sees it, he will most definitely join us. However, we will resume our plan and attack all the human cities with our ground troops. "

"Understood!" said both Homeless Emperor and Gyoro Gyoro in unison.

Orochi reclined in his throne. This would be the beginning of a new world, a world built for the strong, and nobody would stand in his way. No one.


	12. The King's Façade

_Chapter 12 is up! This is a warning: the 2nd half of the chapter is basically going to be a slightly altered version of the manga. I just found it a necessary part to add to this story because it's so integral to the OPM manga. Enjoy!_

* * *

It took a few hours for Bofoi to finish conducting the tests on Saitama. Phenomenal didn't even come close to describing how powerful Saitama was. He hadn't been overly impressed with Saitama's art sculpture, but now that he had the chance to study him up close, he could really see just how overpowered Saitama was. For a starting test, he had Saitama put headgear with several wires to analyze his brainwaves, then he had him do combat with three of his robots that were strong enough to defeat demon level threats.

Saitama, however, wasn't too pleased about the fact that he was standing in front of an old man with only black underwear. "How come I have to do this in nothing but my tighty blackies?"

"It's just to make sure that there are no possible contingencies or side-effects. And besides, that garb doesn't suit you whatsoever." Saitama waved his hands in dismissal. "Whatever."

Without warning, Bofoi commanded the robots to attack Saitama. Bofoi's eyes couldn't even come close to keeping up with Saitama's speed as he laid all three of them to waste. Bofoi gazed back at the monitors, and he stared in disbelief; during that entire interval, his beta wave frequencies stayed leveled out, and his heartbeat stayed at around 68 beats per minute, which was a regular heartbeat. That only further exemplified and proved how elementary his robots were in power comparison to him.

Next, he had him bench pressing a 35 ton barbell that was around 20 times larger than the ordinary, store-bought barbell. 35 tons was too much for even the 2nd strongest member of the Hero Association, Superalloy Darkshine. But to his incessant surprise, Saitama was able to do around 200 reps for nearly 10 minutes straight before his beta waves started to increase, and sweat drops started to fall down his face. At his 237th rep, he finally placed the barbell back on the rack, his muscles starting to ache for the first time in 3 years. "Phew! Man, I have to admit, that one actually caused me to break a few sweats. You might be the first guy to do that in 3 years." Saitama swept the sweat across his face, and he stretched his arms out behind him. Bofoi gave out a chuckle. "You've exceeded my expectations. Now here are a few other monumentally large mechanic exercise machines for you to use."

"Fine fine. I guess I owe you for the coffee." For the next 40 minutes, it was nonstop exercises machines one after another. Saitama lifted 20-ton dumbbells, 100-ton leg extension machines, did 100 repetitions of 30-ton chest presses. After Saitama finished his 150th chest press, he turned to Bofoi, who was monitoring his vitals with amazement. "Hey, why exactly did you make all of this stuff anyway?"

"I originally built them to test Superalloy Darkshine's strength, but he's never humored me and actually agreed to do these tests, so I use them every once in a while to test the physical strength of my automatons."

"Hey as long as I get these free snacks, I'll stay as long as you want. And truth be told, I'm feeling a tiny bit better after those exercises; it actually gave me a real workout. Hell, if you add a TV with HBO in here, I'll hang a picture of you on my apartment wall." Bofoi let out another chuckle of amusement. "I must say, you are a tad more whimsical than I would have expected."

"Yep, you know me. The Whimsical Saitama…" he said, with a nervous chuckle following afterward.

"Well, I believe that I've gathered all of the data I need." Bofoi turned off the monitor screens and began taking off Saitama's headgear. Saitama rubbed his hands all over his oily scalp, the sweat from the exercises causing him to sweat from places he didn't even know he could sweat from. "I will return to the lab and continue to study the alien spacecraft. You can do whatever your inferior mind desires. Just don't destroy any of the equipment."

Saitama nodded and checked around the room in search for a clock. "Hey what time is it anyway?"

Bofoi looked at the watch on his right wrist. "It's around 7:45 PM." Both heroes walked back toward the laboratory, where they found Dr. Kuseno observing the interior of the Space Pod, Child Emperor analyzing the notes both Dr. Kuseno and Bofoi took on the saiyan technology, and Genos standing behind Dr. Kuseno in curiosity. "So Alex. You've finally arrived."

Child Emperor swerved in irritation. "I told you not to call be by my real name! Nobody in my cram school knows it!" Child Emperor groaned. "I'm lucky that I'm a hero. Otherwise, my classmates would probably kick my ass."

"Hey isn't cram school for kids in college?" said Saitama. "My college friend went to cram school. He'd call me every Saturday and ask me to go to some parties he was invited to. Man, was I wasted." Child Emperor gave this unidentified stranger an inquisitive stare. "Yea… Wait a minute!" Child Emperor snapped his fingers. "I remember you! You were the B-class hero at the S-class meeting a few weeks ago. Caped Baldy!"

"That's not my hero name anymore. I was renamed One Punch Man by the Hero Association, and I got bumped up to S-class Rank 4, so yea."

"Are you serious?! There's no way you could move up so high! What did you do, beat a God-level Threat?"

"Yes," said Genos.

"Alex, as preposterous as it might sound, it is not erroneous. But that is not the topical issue right now. Did you and my brother finish reading through both me and my brothers notes?"

Alex gave one last look at Saitama, then turned his attention to Bofoi. "I finished observing the jottings you took on the spaceship, although it didn't take much since there wasn't much to read." Bofoi let out a grunt of annoyance. "Very funny, Alex. I'd like to see you get more information on a completely unknown and unrecognizable alien technology."

"Understandable… Anyway, where do you want me to start? Usually, you'd have me get on your data analyzers and identify the density of the exterior metal alloy you melded?"

Bofoi snickered. "It appears you were able to retain some small information of what you've learned in here. Make it so." Child Emperor nodded and began his analyzing. "Hey before we start, would you by any chance have any Fanta? I paid one of my classmates 30 bucks to take notes for me in class so I could stay here overnight, and I'm going to need some sugar to keep me up."

"You like Fanta too?" said Saitama with slightly raised eyebrows. "For me, Coca Cola Company is "fantastic"! Child Emperor chuckled, to which Saitama was pleased to see. "You just went up a notch in my book. Here's a cold one." Saitama opened the mini fridge and tossed Child Emperor an ice-cold can of Fanta.

Alex stood there trying to understand exactly what was going on here. He had just insulted his credibility as a hero, and in return he gave him a Fanta, a joke, and a compliment? "Thank you," said Alex with a small smile. Who really was this man?

"Yo Genos, lets go. It's getting late, and I've had a long day. Right now, all I want is to take a shower to clean all the sweat off my body."

"Yes Master!" Genos turned to the good doctor. "Dr. Kuseno, do you require any more of my services?"

Dr. Kuseno shook his head. "You've done more than enough. Go home and get some rest."

"Very well doctor."

"Now, if we can halt all of the ceaseless delays, lets get to work." The older brother ran his hands through his hair. "We have a long night ahead of us." The two S-class heroes walked out of the laboratory to leave the three scientists to their work.

"Now, if we can finally begin…"

"Hold on a minute. Alex, you start working on the density analyzers. I need to speak in private with my older brother."

Child Emperor gave Dr. Kuseno a quizzical look. "Sure…"

"Thank you. We'll be out in just a moment." The older brother groaned and moaned like an 8 year old child who wasn't getting a piece of candy from the clerk at the store. Dr. Kuseno pushed Bofoi back into the testing area where Saitama had done his exercises so the two could speak in private.

"What do you want to tell me know, brother? Can't it wait until…"?

"This is urgent." Dr. Kuseno's face toughened to cold stone once more. "I wanted to wait until Genos and Saitama were gone until I told you about this."

"About what?"

Out of his lab coat pocket, Dr. Kuseno pulled a long roll of paper, presumably notes for some sort of future project. "This has been my latest design that I've been working on for 10 years. I almost have it ready, but I haven't been able to find the right energy source to power it or any materials sturdy, conductive, and light enough to perfect it."

Bofoi thoroughly examined his brother's work. "Brother, this is… What you're trying to create… It isn't physically possible. Nothing on this planet can finish this-"

"Not on this planet, no. But if we manage to discover the secrets of this alien technology, you could help me create something unlike anything ever seen before."

Nothing came to Bofoi's mind. This idea was ludicrous and unachievable. His brother was reaching for something that was unattainable. But if by some minute, infinitesimal chance they could pull this off, this would be his greatest advancement yet.

"Alright, brother. Together, we'll create something unlike the world has ever known. And even that Space Emperor will bow in mercy."

* * *

"What a day." Saitama barged through his door as soon as Genos unlocked the door, anxious to get into the shower. "I feel so sweaty in my superhero suit. I'm going to wash all the sweat off my body, than I'll hit the hay. Do you mind if you heat up some leftovers for me?"

"Not at all. Would you like some more kung pao chicken with soy sauce?"

"Sure. Thanks." Saitama shut the door behind him and started unzipping his outfit. He turned the hot water on, grabbing a bar of soap from his dresser drawer. "Ah crap. This is my last Irish soap bar. Oh well, need to make it last." Steam began rising from the shower tub, and Saitama cautiously dipped a toe into the shower. But immediately he regretted it as he felt sizzling hot water all over his foot. "Ah Ah Ah!" He turned the nozzle, making sure none of the water got on his forearm, and inch by inch, submerged himself in the warm yet refreshing water.

His mind began to calm down with the water streaming down his baldhead. "This day might kick last week's awesome Chinese dinner off the throne for best day ever. I got moved up to S-class, I had some nice pretzel snacks, got me a good workout, and I'm having leftover Chinese food for dinner." Saitama gave a small smile. "I wonder what tomorrow will bring…"

* * *

Deep in the cosmos of space, 5 insurmountably powerful warriors were calmly basking in the heat of 3 suns. The Ginyu Force, the most powerful members of the Frieza's army, were each enjoying their yearly three week vacation in the Meridian Star System, which was said to have one of the most diverse ecosystems and pleasant atmospheric conditions.

Guldo, Recoome, Jeice, Burter, and Captain Ginyu moaned in delight as their personal masseuses gently massaged and relaxed their backs.

"Oh, this is the life," said Guldo.

"You can say that again," replied Recoome.

"This is the life." All five of them let out a hearty laugh. "I can't believe we've only been here three weeks. It feels like we've been here for years. It's been so relaxing."

"Well, my team deserves it," said Captain Ginyu. "It's hard to fine such perfect subordinates." The captain's kind words caused causing all his men to slightly blush. "Thanks Captain!"

"Although, if you wanna know the real truth, I've been kind of bored lately," said Burter. Everyone gave a confused look at Burter, as if he was completely out of his mind. "So you don't enjoy this team vacation?" said Captain Ginyu, with hurt evident in his voice.

"No No No! It's not like that! I love all of the games of Yahtzee, the water polo, and the amazing cuisine! But it's just that I kind of want to get in some action, you know? I mean, when was the last time we ever actually fought someone mildly interesting?"

"Ohhhhhh..." The other members of the Ginyu Force nodded at each other in understanding. "I totally know what you mean!" said Guldo. "Every "psychic" I've ever fought on our missions have been jokes!"

"I know, right?" replied Burter.

"Alright, Alright! How about this? After we've finished our massages, how about we do a team training exercise to get our fighting juices flowing back through our bodies?"

"ALRIGHT!"

"Captain Ginyu, you have an incoming message from Lord Frieza!" Ginyu's eyes widened phenomenally, and he scrambled out of his massage table to grab his scouter. The other 4 stared at each other with wide eyes. If Lord Frieza himself was calling, it must have been serious.

"Hello? My Lord?"

The time droned on, and the Captain began nervously sweating. The four other Ginyu Force members looked at each other with equally shaky looks. Did they do something wrong?

"A delivery? In a weeks time? Not a problem at all! The Ginyu Force will be on its way. Thank you, My Lord!" Ginyu clicked the scouter off, and filled with rejuvenated and frantic energy, began frantically putting his armor on. "What's the matter?"

"We're hand-delivering the most advanced scouters to date from the brains at Frieza Planet 245 and joining Frieza in a raid against a planet in the Northern Quadrant of the Galaxy."

"Really?" said Burter. "Whoa. The Northern Quadrant of the Galaxy hasn't yet been annexed into Lord Frieza's Empire. Do you think we'll meet some powerful fighters?"

"Who cares?! All that matters is Lord Frieza needs our attention. Everyone suit up. We're going."

"Yes sir!"

* * *

Men and women were screaming and running away in horror from the newest mysterious being terrorizing the citizens. For in M-City, The Tongue Stretcher, a wolf-level threat, had just arisen.

"HAHAHAHAHA! I'm a man who loved all reptiles so much I turned into a reptilian tongue stretcher! You! The dame in the white blouse! Come here and give me some love!" The Tongue Stretcher shot his long tongue out at the woman, who screamed in panic.

"It's a monster!"

"Run!"

"Can't we stop it?"

"That thing took out 5 grown men like they were nothing! We're done for!"

Everyone was running for his or her lives. Well, everyone except one man. The man, with his eyes covered by a cap, began to slowly make his way to the Tongue Stretcher.

"WOAH!" The Tongue Stretcher turned to meet an unexpected stranger standing right behind him. "Who are you? What the hell are you doing?"

Something felt wrong. Sweat beads began to fall down the monster's face as he began to feel an insane pressure emitting from this man. Three claw marks ran across this man's left eye, which only made him more intimidating. "Wait a minute. Don't I recognize those scars?"

The civilians gasped. "That man! He's an S-class hero, the strongest man on the planet!"

"Its King!"

"Wait. You mean you're the legendary…" Tongue Stretcher felt all feeling in his legs evaporate at this realization. Meanwhile, the crowd was filled with a new sense of passion. Chants of "KING!" "Kick that toad's ass!" and "You're the best!" began filling the air.

The wolf-threat monster didn't even try to put up a fight. Him, fighting the strongest man on the planet? Not a chance in hell.

"Please spare me! I didn't mean to cause this much trouble! I'm sorry!"

The woman who was targeted by the Tongue Stretcher walked over to the now defeated monster. She gave it a disgusting look. "Go lick lick in hell, you fucking pervert."

The crow of people began swarming around King like bees to honey, all of them in awe of the way King was able to bring this monster down on his knees without lifting a finger, and all of them desperate to see this legend up close and praise him as the unstoppable hero he was in the eyes of the public.

"I'm in a rush. Can you move aside?"

"Of course! EVERYONE MAKE A PATH FOR HIM!" The people scurried out of his way. For King, the people would do anything.

"Thank you for coming King! We'd be glad to serve you again!" The bell dinged. King was walking out of a Gamestop, with the newest Dating Simulation game "Doki Doki Sisters" Limited First Edition in his hands. 'Finally got it. Now I can just sit back at home and relax with my all new video game console.'

* * *

Just a few dozen meters, the two prodigious heroes Genos and Saitama walked out of a market place with groceries in both of their hands. "Did we really have to buy a full box of seaweed? Couldn't we have just gotten like a small bag or something like that?"

"This is a very rare seaweed brand. It was one of the products on-sale at the huge farmers market bargain deal in M-City. I wanted to ensure this supply would last us a few weeks."

"Good thinking there." As the two of them continued to walk down the street, something interesting caught Saitama's attention. Walking just a few meters in front of them was a guy with huge claw-scars running across his face. "Yo who is that guy?"

Genos stood fixated at the man his master pointed out. Genos inched forward in fascination. "Master, that is the S-class Rank 7 hero, King. Why would a man of such stature be roaming the streets alone in such an ordinary place as M-City?"

Without warning, the ground began trembling. Civilian screams began to fill the air, and the sound of mechanical whirs and clicks was present.

"IT'S A MONSTER!"

"PROTECT THE CHILDREN!"

Saitama's face toughened at the sound of trouble. Genos took a fighting position and prepared to engage in combat, but a growing sense of curiosity stopped him. This was a very good time to see just how powerful legendary hero King really was.

The mysterious being that just rose from the ground was a towering and intimidating humanoid robot. It had a singular optic eye that was staring down at King. Its body was lavishly decorated with shiny ornaments and plating, even wearing a royal fur cape and crown, as if he were robotic royalty.

"My name is G4, a Machine God created by The Organization," the robot said with an imperious tone. "You are the strongest hero, King. I have come to eradicate you!"

The frightened citizens felt a wave or relief wash through them.

"GET'EM KING!"

"KICK ITS METAL ASS!"

"Organization?" said King. "I'm the S-Class Rank 7 hero, King. Are you aware of that? I'm the strongest man on this planet."

The mechanical monster unsheathed its sword, swinging it towards King with immense speed, so fast that the citizens didn't even see him move. The tip of the blade stood inches away from King's face, yet King remained stoic and emotionless, not even the slightest hint of worry on his face.

"I have already said I came to kill you! This is a performance test assigned to me, the most powerful warrior of the Organization. Killing you with a surprise attack gains us no useful data. Fight me with everything you've got!"

The crows stood silent, waiting in anticipation to see King defeat the perhaps demon-level threat. After 15 seconds, King finally spoke, and the crowd stood on their heels.

"Alright. I'll humor you and show you what I'm made of. But first I need to use the bathroom. I won't be able to use even half of my strength if I have to hold a gallon full of piss. Then you won't have you're precious data. Once I'm done, I'll gladly kick your ass."

G4 found it very odd that the strongest man on Earth would be having bladder problems at this very moment. But he knew that inconclusive data wouldn't please the Organization. "Very well." G4 put his sword back in his sheath and folded his arms. "I will wait here for 10 minutes for you to expel your disgusting bodily matter. For every minute you are gone, I will kill 10 people. If you have the audacity to escape, then this town will be obliterated."

Everyone ran for their lives, knowing they would be the robot's first victims if King didn't void his bladder in time. Genos and Saitama observed G4 while hiding behind a lamppost. "Dang, that monster looks pretty strong."

"Yes." Genos began scanning G4's energy readings to confirm whether he was truly a robot or not. "High energy readings… There's no doubt that is a robot. His power is extraordinary. Even I, who was built by the genius Dr. Kuseno, might not be able to defeat it. So how will King stop this machine god?"

* * *

The bathroom door was locked shut. King stood hunched on the bathroom stall, his eyes very dark. "So, that thing came to kill me. Huh. Hah. Hah…."

The strongest man on Earth began sweating enough to drench his shirt collar. His eyes began to water with tears, and his regularly plain expression turned into one of utter terror. "That thing was terrifying. How the hell did it get to this?"

"I'm not a hero. I'm just a 29-year-old gaming addict living alone. I'm not a fighter. I'm just as scared of these monsters as anybody else. No, I'm ten times more cowardly than everyone else! And the King Engine?" King actually managed to let out a chuckle. "Where the fuck did they come up with that? I'm just so goddamn terrified, other people can actually hear my heart beating. It was just by chance that every single time a demon-level or dragon-level monster was beaten I was standing there. THA'S IT! And to make it even better, it happened 5 times! I was praised as a new, extremely powerful badass, then without my consent, the Hero Association rushed me up all the way to S-class."

"There's no way that robots gonna be scared off just by my name! I'm sick of being a hero! I don't wanna die! Jesus, my heart's about to burst out my chest! What can I do?" His watch blared to life, and his stomach sank to the ground. King began to hear the sound of metal cracking against something hard.

"People are dying… And it's all my fault." He sank his head down to the floor in shame.

"I'm sorry… I'm sorry… I'm sorry…"

Realizing he couldn't do a single thing to stop G4, the survival-driven part of his brain began to take the wheel. "Could I make a run for it? I mean, if I pick a fight against that thing, I'm gonna die, and he's just gonna kill everyone anyway. But if I get away, a hero who can actually put up a fight could stop that thing." King knew that was just false hope, but it was the only thing he could think that would end well for everyone without him or anyone else having to die.

So, using all the energy he had, he began sprinting for his life, not daring to look back at all the dead bodies he inadvertently sent to their graves.

"I'm so sorry everyone. I'm sorry."

* * *

G4 had finally had enough. With his patience past its limit, he swung his sword at the first human he could find. He was expecting blood, bones, and intestines to spill out of the human, but he was shocked when the bystander not only deflected his sword, but also actually managed to shatter the tip. The warrior was none other than Genos himself.

Genos smirked, then launched at the momentarily distracted G4 a rocket punch at full strength. The blow landed straight on G4's face, and sent him flying into the pavement. "You didn't tell me you had a rocket punch. That's kinda cool."

G4 propelled himself up from the ground with backward propulsion systems and stared at this new fighter. He scanned through the Organization's database to see who this was. "Oh, I see. You're the S-class, Rank 14 hero, Demon Cyborg. You're not my primary target, but you're rise through the S-class has been charted by The Organization. Very well." G4 threw a hard downward punch, which Genos was only narrowly able to block with his own arm. "Since King is taking his sweet time, you will be my opponent. Consider this a privilege. You will face G4, the Machine God, at his peak!"

Saitama watched in boredom. "Do you need any help Genos?"

Genos grunted against the strain of G4's fist. "No!" Genos shoved G4's arm off of him, then launched a barrage of flaming punches. "A foe like this needs to be taken out by me alone!"

Saitama shrugged his shoulders. "Alrighty then. But don't get beaten by this loser, got it?"

* * *

"Huff huff huff…" The strongest man on Earth was panting and wheezing. After a very long sprint to escape from G4, he finally made it back to his apartment.

"That robots gonna haunt my nightmares for weeks!" King shuddered at the thought of the robots sword slicing him in half. He let out a very long breath, than exhaled to calm himself down. "At least I still got the Doki Doki Sister's game. I'll just play on my console and forget all about it…" King inserted the CD into the gaming console, eager to play. The monitor blared to life.

"Man, I can't get enough of that Doki Doki Sister's opening."

"Wake up Oni-chan! It's morning!"

King looked on in slight annoyance. "What the hells up with this voice actress? Can it be any more dull?"

"Now, lets see what my name will be…" King contemplated his decisions and began moving the toolbox across the different letterboxes. "Should I use my real name? Nah, that's way too embarrassing. It's a tough call…"

"Why not just go with King,…" a random voice said right behind him.

"Nah, using my hero name just sounds stupid. If anyone heard her call me King Oni-chan, I'd blow my brains out…" Wait, what? Standing in his apartment with him was this random bald guy with a Hawaiian shirt. Who was this guy, and how did he get up here?

"Dude, this is the 22nd floor."

"Yea, but the window was open. Pretty easy jumping through it."

"Dude, not cool! You can't just barge into somebody else's apartment room like that! Don't you know I'm an S-class hero?"

Saitama remained emotionless. "Yea. You're King, right?" King stammered. "But I gotta say…"

'Now I remember that guy!' thought King. 'He was that B-class hero at the S-class hero meeting who asked for the tea.'

"I didn't expect you to be into this kind of game," continued Saitama, breaking through King's thoughts. King's entire face turned crimson red. "STOP!" There was no way in hell he could let this B-class hero know he played dating video games.

Bored with the Dating Sim game, he scrounged through King's other video games, and let out a very awe-stricken gasp with what he found. "You have a GameCube? I used to have one of these when I was a kid. Jesus, you have Super Smash Bros Melee, Metroid Prime, and Mario Double Cart? Did you play Super Smash Bros Melee? My god!" Saitama let out a geeky gasp. "You have all generations of Xbox, PlayStation, a Wii, and Wii U? You can actually afford all of this stuff? You're like the coolest gamer ever! Were you gonna play some Super Smash Bros Melee?"

"OF COURSE!" King grabbed the Doki Doki Sister's box from Saitama and threw it hard on the ground. "I'M REALLY INTO THE OLD CLASSIC ACTION GAMES! I THOUGHT I BOUGHT LEGEND OF ZELDA: TWILIGHT ZONE, BUT IT TURNED OUT TO BE A STUPID DATING GAME! I BOUGHT THE WRONG GAME!"

"But it says Doki Doki Sisters right on the cover," said Saitama, sounding unconvinced.

King let out a gasp. "ARE YOU SERIOUS?! HERE I THOUGHT IT READ DOKI DOKI ZELDA: TWILIGHT PRINCESS! THOSE MOTHER FUCKERS LIED TO ME! I'M GONNA DEMAND A REFUND!"

"So can you show me what characters you've unlocked in Super Smash Bros Melee?"

"SURE SURE! Just let me take out the disc first! Look how stupid I am, buying a dating sim!"

"So are you gonna give it a whirl?'

King inwardly scoffed with incredulity. 'Unbelievable. This guy knows who I am, yet he's barged into my home, uninvited, and forced me to stop my private time.'

"Sure… Let me just pick a console."

* * *

The battle between the two robots raged on, and both were fighting with everything they had. The civilians watching the battle could only see huge, fiery explosions created from both combatants' attacks. The rest of the hand-to-hand combat was unwatchable due to the insanely high speed they were fighting at.

Genos landed on the ground with a thud. His right faceplate was beginning to form some cracks, and his energy supply was at 50-60% capacity. He couldn't continue this head-on confrontation. If things continued like this, he would run out of energy before G4. If he wanted to be victorious, he had to exploit his advantages and prey on G4's disadvantages. And if he had to choose, G4's weakness was…

An idea popped inside Genos' brain. He did several front flips high up into the air, then, charging his incineration cannons at full power, blasted G4 with an immensely hot ball of fire. G4's royal metal body began to fall apart, the heat of Geno's cannons melting his entire body.

"His gigantic body was his Achilles heel. I've melted him from the inside, which should render him completely immobile. This battle is over."

But wait! Something was emerging from the lava-covered remains of G4. A tiny, dark red being was staring at Genos with two hateful eyes. "Is that the pilot? No… It's his true form!" Dozens of bullets began streaming from the several holes spread around its body. Round two had just begun.

* * *

"Dude, you better brace yourself. 4 juggernauts are rolling in." Sipping his apple juice given to him by King, Saitama was watching King play Call of Duty: Modern Warfare III on his Xbox 360. Right now, he was playing survival mode in The Dome arena, since the jungle of cords was nearly impossible to untangle, and the Xbox 360 was already plugged in. King was ripping through waves and waves of soldiers, attack dogs, and helicopters without taking any heavy damage, and he was already at level 25. Hell, he was able to make it all the way to level 18 without using a self-revive. "You're really good at this game. I could never beat the juggernaut without using a heavy machine gun or grenades."

"I went to a lot of video game tournaments when I was a teenager, so I've gotten pretty good at first person shooters and other games like Mario Kart."

'How long is he gonna stay? Can't he just leave already so I can go back to my dating sim game?'

King inwardly sighed and continued to play. But what he didn't notice was that Saitama was squinting at him, concentrating as hard as he could to find a feeling from King like he felt against Vegeta and Nappa last week. But he couldn't sense anything. Nothing even remotely unique was emanating from King. Something smelled fishy, and he was gonna find out what it was.

"So I gotta ask: why did you bail from the fight before? Genos is fighting in your place right now."

Juice came snorting out of King's mouth and nostrils. He thought he'd managed to avoid that questioning from Saitama. What should he say? 'Shit!'

"I came to ask you that question, but then I saw all the gaming consoles and then you started playing Call of Duty. Has fighting monsters become so easy for you that its become boring? Is that why you bailed out on the fight and came to your apartment? King, just tell me. Please tell me what you're thinking, dude."

"I…"

An alarm suddenly blared to life. A woman then began speaking via a PA system.

"Emergency Evacuation! Emergency Evacuation! An immensely large bird has been spotted flying above M-City! It is an estimated Demon-level threat! Stay in your homes!"

"Another alert? That's like the 12th alert this week. Well, Ima head out." Saitama stood up from the floor and grabbed his bags. "Are you gonna leave too, or are you just gonna keep on relaxing in here? I think I'll come back later, especially with all the awesome consoles you had."

'Phew. Now I'll finally relax… Oh look, a bird.' King noticed a crow flying in the distance. But he found it kind of weird that the bird was getting bigger. And bigger. And bigger.

"Oh fuck…"

In an instant, The Giant Crow came crashing through King's apartment, its eyes gleaming with hunger and its teeth bore out to consume its latest prey.

Fortunately for King, Saitama stopped the bird's beak with a single hand.

"Looks like this thing came right to you."

King clutched his heart, which was beating faster than ever. "Holy fuck that startled me."

"I guess the title of strongest man in the world attracts monsters to you, King."

King remained in a state of shock, unable to move a muscle. 'Just great! I've already had terrible luck, but it's gotten even worse recently! I guess this is karma getting back at me for lying. What the hell do I do?'

"Guess you don't have any choice but to fight it. A man's house is his castle, after all."

'Gimme a break. Every time, I was put into a situation where he looked like the hero. Every time I ran away, somebody beat the monsters, and every time I took the credit. Days turned into weeks, and I watched money rolling in. The Hero Association must have assumed I was the one who beat it sine the guy who beat the monsters never showed his face, I was always the only one there, and I have a huge scar across my face which looks badass to some.

'Funny thing is, I've never brawled in my life. The hero name they gave me shows the hero that stands above all heroes; the strongest man on the Earth: King. What a joke. They've got it all wrong. I'm not a King. I'm just a fraud, sitting on a throne of lies. The real King is sitting out there somewhere, living his life without the credit he deserves.

'I have to tell him the truth. If I don't, I'll die.'

"The truth is, I am…" King didn't even have the time to tell the truth before the Giant Crow made his move. He screamed. He screamed with every ounce of terror he had in his body. He closed his eyes and prepared for the death he so rightfully deserved.

King heard a very loud and sharp sound. 'Was that B-class eaten? Why didn't he just run when he had the chance?' He sobbed. 'He didn't have to die. It was my entire fault. I'm sorry I wasn't strong enough to protect you. I know it's too late for apologies, but please forgive me!"

"So is it true? Are all the rumors about you're strength really just a lie? Is that why I can't sense anything powerful from you?"

King opened his eyes. The B-class hero was standing, some blood on his face and shirt, but other than that, not a single hint of injury. 'How? What happened to the bird? What's happening?'

"Did you seriously piss yourself because of bird?"

King couldn't respond properly. "You beat it… A disaster level demon monster." Nothing made sense.

"Are you okay?"

That blood. That voice. He'd heard them before.

* * *

 _"Everybody run for your lives!" Swarms of people were running from their lives, filled with terror at the newest mysterious being that just arrived. "It's Disaster Level Tiger! Octopus Claw Man!" One man, soon to be known as King, lost his footing, leaving him all alone against this eight-legged monster._

 _"Eek!" King squeaked like a mouse. The monster looked down at the fresh meat, than swiped at him with his razor sharp claws. The three claws slashed through King's left eye like a box cuter through paper._

 _"OWWWWW! MY EYE!" King clutched his left eye and began squirming and screaming in pain. Tears and some drool were pouring down King's face, "SOMEBODY PLEASE HELP ME!"_

 _"Hey, calm down." King still had his eyes closed, the wound still causing him to feel a burning sensation. Who was this man talking to him? "The monster has been taken care of. Is your eye all right? The wound doesn't look that deep, so you should try and open it slowly…" The man did as instructed, and what he saw in front of him was unbelievable. A man in a blue tracksuit had blood all over his face and claw marks all over his body._

 _"Can you see?"_

 _King looked up at the man, his eyes still tearing up from pain and shock. "Who… who are you?"_

 _The unknown stranger gave a sly smirk. "Me? Well, I'm just trying to become a hero for the fun of it. If you find a hero on the streets fighting monsters, that'll be me."_

 _"But your wounds! You look like you're hurt really bad."_

 _He scoffed at the concern in the man's voice. "What, these scratches? These are nothing. Well anyway, cya. Today's a big sale at the farmer's market." Wiping the blood off of his face, he started jogging down the street as if nothing had happened, leaving behind a man with dumbfounded silence. That guy was gonna make it big someday._

* * *

'That man is the splitting image of this B-class hero, minus the hair. It's really him… It has to be."

"King, you alright man?"

"Uhhhh…" King attempted to speak through sobs and a stuffy nose. "I'm sorry."

"So it's true…" Saitama sat on the ground in a cross-legged position. "Huh. Is it fun having the status as the strongest man on the planet, but being a body full of lies and scared shitless?"

"It's terrible. All my "accomplishments" are probably yours. I'm sorry."

"Don't worry about it. Besides, I already got bumped up all the way to S-class yesterday?"

King's face lit up. "Really? That's great man! Congratulations!"

"Oh thanks man," said Saitama, giving a small smile. "But anyway, you're the hero everybody looks up to."

King's smile returned to a depressed frown. "No, that's not…"

"You're the only one the people know as the strongest man, no matter what. All you have to do is become strong enough to stand up to those monsters, and you'll be alright, don't you think?"

An anime-style sweat drop fell down his face. "What?"

"So are you gonna keep this charade up? Or will you just quit being a hero?"

"I don't have the balls to decide. I have no fucking gender."

"Ok then." Saitama pushed himself off the floor and grabbed his shopping bags. "I gotta get going. See ya later man."

"Hold on a sec! Aren't you pissed at me for taking your credit?"

"You're cool man. I'll probably come over to play smash with you just so you can pay me back." And with a single hop, this former B-class hero was gone.

"What the… Did, did we just become friends?" King let out a chuckle. Guess being a hero wasn't as bad as he thought. He made his first friend in nearly 8 years. What a world.

* * *

The aroma of sweat, coffee, pretzel sticks, and cheeze-its permeated the room as the three geniuses with unmitigated intellect continued to work away. Only a day had passed since Minister Sitch had learned of Saitama's power and the three scientists had started analyzing the alien technology, and the three had already made amazing progress.

"Bofoi, have you finished diagraming the control console for replication?" asked Dr. Kuseno.

"I just finished," replied Bofoi. "Alex, have you been able to figure out what kind of elements make up the pod's outer shell?"

"I believe that the outer shell is comprised of 30% magnesium alloy, 30% titanium alloy, 10% silicon carbide, and a few other compounds I still haven't been able to work out. It only weight around 1,000 pounds at the most, which could enable it to go at much faster speeds than expected for a space craft of its size."

"How interesting. I found some of those compounds in the large spacecraft that crashed a few weeks ago. I wonder if there might be some connection. It might also help me figure out how to repair the energy core I recovered…"

"Wait, what did you say?" said Dr. Kuseno.

"What? You mean about the energy core just now?"

"Yes!"

"Didn't I already tell you about all of the parts I recovered from the large spaceship that touched down on Earth a few weeks ago?"

"No, you didn't."

"Ah. Well, my bad." Dr. Kuseno gave Bofoi a very angry and mistrusting look. "I'm sorry, alright? It's just that with all the work we've had to do, it must have slipped my mind. And besides, there was too much damage to reactivate the energy core. I haven't a clue as how to get it starting again. Anyway, brother, have you found out what the fuel source for the alien space pod is?"

Dr. Kuseno gave one last icy look, and sighed. That was probably the best he was going to get out of him. Oh well. They'd work on that later. "The space pod has a very small but extremely potent fuel drive. The fuel box has a VERY thick lead lining, implying it's hiding something remarkably radioactive as to prevent any radiation poisoning for the pilots. We're either going to have to used a remote controlled robot to cut through the lead lining, or we can do it ourselves and protect ourselves with radiation suits. I think its best we use the remote controlled robot to make sure there are no safety parameters breached."

Randall, Bofoi's personal assistant, suddenly spoke to Bofoi through the microphone. "Metal Knight, Demon Cyborg is requesting permission to come down to your laboratory. Should I tell him you're busy?"

"No, send him in."

Ok boss." Bofoi looked away and munched on one of the fortune cookies sitting on his desk. "You know brother, that Chinese restaurant you ordered from wasn't half bad. I didn't expect you to have any sense of dining cuisine."

"Thanks…" said Dr. Kuseno. Still condescending as always, even with compliments.

Dr. Kuseno turned his attention to Alex, who was working in his station. His eyes constantly fluttered open and shut, and many times his head would start leaning down. Dr. Kuseno walked over to Child Emperor, who was so tired he didn't even notice his presence.

"Alex?" No response. "Alex!" Dr. Kuseno shook the boys shoulders firmly to wake him up.

The 10-year-old boy opened his eyes, but had trouble taking in the rays of light. "What? Sorry. I'll get back to work."

"Alex, why don't you get some rest?"

Child Emperor shook his head. "No no, I'm fine. Let me try and find… some more… Fanta…" The fatigue overcame him in seconds, and like that, Child Emperor fell asleep, his head laying right on Dr. Kuseno's chest. Dr. Kuseno couldn't help but let out a warm smile. He was a very gifted child, but even intelligent children needed sleep, no matter how much they denied it.

Bofoi snorted at his assistant's sudden collapse. "Looks like Alex couldn't handle the pressure."

"Like either of us was any better than him back at our age."

"Doctor Kuseno, I'm here."

'Thank god,' thought Bofoi. But when he looked at Genos, he and his brother stepped back with mild shock. Demon Cyborg's entire right face was burned, exposing his metal cranium. His left shoulder had jagged pipes and metal shards sticking out where his arm should have been, and bits and pieces of him were falling on the floor with every step. Whatever Genos did, it was clearly challenging.

Dr. Kuseno immediately rushed to Genos and closely examined his body. "Genos! What happened to you?"

"I did battle with a demon-level robot calling itself Machine God G4. The robot was equipped with amazing power and very advanced artificial intelligence. Although most of it was destroyed, I was able to salvage some of its parts." Genos tossed the remaining parts to the ground. "If any parts are usable, please do so. I want to become stronger."

The two scientists looked at the parts with allure.

"This is unbelievable…"

Whoever built this technology, he, she, or it was clearly someone as intelligent and familiar with robotics as Bofoi and Dr. Kuseno. While it didn't appear as cutting-edge as the extraterrestrial technology, it was certainly a very big step up from what they had built thus far.

"There have been far too many times where I've been bested and Master Saitama has had to save me. I need to improve."

Dr. Kuseno could distinguish the palpable tone of disappointment in his voice. Genos was ashamed in himself. If this would make him gain more confidence in his abilities, he would be glad to upgrade Genos. "You still have room for improvements. Very well. I will try my best."

Genos bowed in respect toward the doctor. "Thank you doctor."

"Now go return to my laboratory for repairs, since Bofoi doesn't have the necessary equipment required for your reconstruction."

"Yes, doctor!" The teenage cyborg sprinted out the door, leaving the two brothers alone once again.

"When are you going to tell him?" said Bofoi. "You can't keep this big a secret from him."

Dr. Kuseno collapsed in his chair, pinching the bridge of his nose. "I don't know. I just don't know."


	13. So It Begins (For Real This Time)

_Here it is guys! Chapter 13! As some of you might have noticed, I split this chapter into two segments, since I thought that the chapter as a whole was too long, but either way, I hope you enjoy every word. I hit 200 followers and over 30,000 views on my story, so I'd like to give a big thanks to everyone whose followed my story. I really appreciate your support, and I love that you're entertained by my writing. So, without further ado, let's begin Chapter 13!_

* * *

While the three scientists and the two heroes were having their own equally difficult challenges to face, the two prisoners kept captive inside their prison were facing their most excruciatingly difficult challenge yet: how to stand each other without gouging their eyes and ears out.

The road to recovery had been a very long and arduous task for both warriors. However, thanks to the saiyan's superior body, the saiyan general had managed to get up on his two legs. He'd even managed to get a few steps in before he collapsed from the exhaustion of simply walking. Sonic was still having trouble turning his head without feeling like his neck would spin off like a spinning top. He had absolutely no idea how many days it had been since his defeat, so he could at best guess he'd been imprisoned for 3, maybe 4 days.

Nappa was running out of things to do to occupy his time without talking to his bunkmate. He'd tried to count how many steps wide his prison cell was, but his legs gave out before he could finish. He would have even enjoyed a simple clock to watch the seconds tick by. However, something as seemingly ridiculous as that to pass time was not an option. Twice everyday, the room would fill with some sort of sleeping gas to knock both of them out, and when they woke up, a plate of food would be sitting right beside them.

At times, some random people with very odd-looking costumes would stand guard at the front of their cell. He attempted to spite these humans by mouthing terrible obscenities to them. He'd actually managed to get a few of them to bawl in tears like a bunch of bitches, which he felt rather proud of. But eventually, his insults and cutting remarks slid off these heroes like oil on water. So yet another form of entertainment was taken away from him like a child who could no longer eat candy. That left only one option.

"Hey prick, what're you doing up there? You crying to yourself like a little baby bitch, asking mamma to kiss your booboos? Yea, well luckily for me, my superior genes allow me to heal 10 times faster than your stick-like body, so while you're struggling to even turn your head, I'm already up and on my feet moving."

"Oh, good for you. Well, then how come your "superior genes" didn't allow you to instantly beat a weakling like me?"

"I was caught off guard, that's all."

"Sure…"

Both sneered at each other, then defiantly turned their heads away from each other. But what Nappa didn't know was that his words had actually managed to hit a nerve in Sonic. Even though he boasted big talk, he knew that Nappa was right. At this rate, it would take him at least a month to recover from his injuries, give or take 2 weeks at best.

And so the two of them continued to sit in silence. Neither of them could handle this immense boredom, and coupled with the pain from merely moving, made days unbearable. Both of them noticed this growing sense of boredom in each other's eyes, which was something they seemed to have in common, besides being stone cold assassins.

About an hour after their very short spat, Nappa turned to the door when they heard someone's arrival, while Sonic merely shifted closer to the wall. Nappa took in this newcomer with curiosity. The man's face was like an unreadable mask. His face was thin and rather feminine, with icy blue eyes, and blond hair that stood out in the dim light. He wore a very dark blue bodysuit with metallic bracers over his arms and upper chest armor, with a long white cape fluttering over it just like that caped bastard who beat him. On his head were several 8-pointed stars, worn on him like a 10-year old would wear a barrette. And the piece of resistance was a chain strapped around his waist that held his sheath and sword in place.

Nappa felt his whole body tingling from the energy this stranger was putting out. Ever since he'd been imprisoned, he attempted to hone this extrasensory sense not only because it seemed like an important ability to improve, but also because he had NOTHING better to do.

One thing was certain: whoever this person was, he was way above the likes of those weaklings who had been guarding him before. He might even be even more powerful than the prick, although since the prick was in a weakened state, it was hard to compare their power.

"You look like a cut above the rest. Who the hell are you?"

The stranger folded his arms and continued to stare at Nappa with his expressionless mask.

"You're not a big talker, are you?"

"Not really, no. I'm just here to keep an eye on you." Flashy Flash lied. Sitch determined that they were in too weak of a condition and Metal Knight's cage was strong enough to hold the prisoners, so no more heroes were put on guard. No, this was a more personal matter he needed to deal with.

Flashy Flash peered to look at the farther right end and saw the 2nd prisoner lying on the bed, with his back facing him. "I can see you sleeping on your bed, Kazuki. Get your lazy ass out of bed."

No. No, it couldn't be. Sonic recognized that condescending tone, the shadow of his past coming back to haunt him. Pushing himself off the wall, he turned his body back to the window to see this fucker once again. The two met eyes, and in less than a second, sparks of fury began flying from Sonic, and steam erupted from him in a fiery inferno of rage. "You… It's you…"

Nappa sat agape when he saw the anger in Sonic's eyes vehemently skyrocket to a level like he'd never seen from him before. Foam began to form at the edge of Sonic's mouth. His fists were clenched so hard, blood started to trickle down his hand. And to make it even more shocking, Sonic actually dropped out of his bed and trudged to the front of the cell. His entire body must have been pumping with rage if he was able to go from not even able to turn his head to getting back on his two legs in a matter of seconds. Nappa was both impressed and interested by how Sonic could become this enraged.

"WHAT THE FUCK ARE YOU DOING HERE, KUTO?!"

Flashy Flash remained motionless and emotionless. "I wanted to see if you were really imprisoned and just how bad you were hurt."

"Oh, thank you for your sentimental concern over my wellbeing! Now you can go!"

Flashy flash closed his eyes, shaking his head in disappointment at his former friend's fall from grace. "Why did you become an assassin? A mercenary for hire who kills whoever he's hired without remorse? That's not what our master taught us. I followed the path of the honor and have protected the innocent. All you've done is selfishly killed whomever you want for money and power! You dishonor our refined arts with your deadbeat assasinations!"

Both Nappa and Flashy Flash jumped when Sonic slammed his hand against the cage with his bloodstained hand. Even in his weakened state, a tiny crack formed on the very thick glass. "How dare you lecture me on selfishness! Its because of you that our clan was killed by that monster all those years ago! The entire 44th generation is gone because of you!"

A monster? His clan wiped out? Nappa inclined his head with piquing wonder, and unknown to him, he felt a drop of empathy filled his heart. "We knew that monster was coming! We were going to launch a surprise attack together with the entire clan ready to strike! With our combined forces, we should have been able to defeat him, and you know it! Oh, but you were so confident in your training! You alone believed that your training to become a hero was enough to deal with the threat! So you lied to me, going off to fight the monster on your own without a second thought! And what happened then?"

Flashy Flash's mask finally lowered, and he grimaced at the memory of that day. The burning monasteries, the screaming children, and the blood of their people spilt all over the land. "I was wrong to go alone. I'm sorry."

"That's all you have to say? You're sorry?! Well sorry isn't going to bring our parents back from the grave! Sorry isn't going to bring back our master who sacrificed himself to save our lives! All because of your heroic arrogance, your perverted sense of justice! No matter what a hero does, they can never win against a truly strong opponent nor can they protect anybody or anything, and your living proof of that! You're pathetic!"

All three warriors stood in deathly silence, the room moist with apprehension and boiling anger. Finally, after what seemed like an eternity, Flashy Flash unfolded his arms. "It was pointless to come here. I don't even know why I bothered."

"Yea, well neither do I. Now get the fuck out of here before I puke." Flashy Flash walked out of the room without another word.

With that disgusting rat gone, Sonic trudged back to his bed, the anger and adrenaline quickly fading out of his system. He could actually hear the bones in his knees and fingers cracking as he struggled to even climb up the tiny ladder. Finally making it to the mattress on the top bunk, he landed on his bed with a hard thud.

Sonic's muscles relaxed, melting on the rock hard mattress. Right now, all he could do was focus on recovery, and sleep was the only thing that could help speed the process along.

But just before he shut his eyes closed, a hard round object was thrown up and landed straight on his chest. Sonic looked down and expected to see some sort of rock, but it was an apple. "What the…"

Sonic craned his head to the right. "Wait, did you… Why did you give this to me?"

Nappa looked up at the top bunk and let out a scoff. "Don't get used to it. I just figured that you'd need to be at your top game if you plan on beating that ninja punk to the ground. On my planet, a saiyan who went off on his own like that either got his ass kicked by his comrades or was banished from his platoon for a year. But this doesn't change anything. Once your done with him, you're gonna have to deal with me."

"I'm counting on it." Sonic licked his lips, and bit down on the red juicy apple. A gift from one killer to another, that's all it was.

* * *

"Come on… Come on! NOOO! GODAMMIT, THAT'S THE 5TH FRICKIN TIME IN A ROW YOU'VE BEATEN ME!"

"It just takes practice."

The most powerful heroes in the public's eyes and in reality's eyes were duking it out in most ultimate form of battle there was: Super Smash Bros Melee on GameCube. 4 days had passed since he'd been promoted to S-class, and it'd been pretty boring. Sure, there'd been a few monsters that popped up every now and again, but as always, they went down in one punch. So he figured some video game time with King wouldn't be too out of line, so he came over to King's place to play some Xbox, Gamecube, or whatever was available. And surprisingly, King was more than willing to invite him into his apartment and play the game Saitama first suggested.

But he was getting his ass poned like never before. Every single time, King went as random and Saitama went as Fox, his best character, and EVERY SINGLE TIME, he would be dominated. For gods sake, he lost to King when King was playing as PICHU.

Saitama was gritting his teeth, and was starting to crack the controller with how hard he was gripping at it, and that was while he was holding back his anger.

King noticed Saitama's anger and grew slightly concerned. "Hey Saitama. Are you alright man?"

"I'm fine man," said Saitama through his gritted teeth and a fake smile.

King could instantly tell Saitama wasn't alright, so he quickly reacted to calm Saitama down before he would wreck his controller and possibly his entire apartment. "Dude, it's alright. I've played video games for YEARS. I've won almost every single video game tournament I've played. Hell, you're probably the best competition I've had in a few years, so don't sweat it."

This comment eased Saitama's anger, and his eyebrows started to unfurrow. "Yea, well, I played this a lot with my two brothers when I was a kid."

"Nice. And besides, you could poke me on the forehead, and my head would go hurtling straight into the sun."

Saitama let out a chuckle. "Thanks man."

King pushed himself off of the floor and went to the kitchen to fetch himself something to quench his thirst. "You want a drink?"

"Sure. I'll take some Fanta if you have some."

King rummaged around through his refrigerator for some Fanta. "Na sorry man. I do have some Sprite if you want some."

"That sounds good to me." King smiled and took out a glass from his cabinet. As he began filling the glass with ice, Saitama began looking through all of the trophies in King's trophy collection. "Wow, you really managed to get all of the character trophies and all the final smash trophies?"

"Yep," said King, with a smirk on his face.

"Cool."

"Say, didn't you say you had a disciple?"

"Yea?"

"Where is he?"

"You see, Genos and I were over at the old man's dojo…"

"Are you talking about Bang?"

"Yea, whatever. Anyway, he offered to share with us some really delicious fugu, to which I absolutely couldn't refuse. He'd offered me some lobster a few days ago, but that was almost ruined by these punks who showed up and demanded a fight with the old man. They almost took out the lobsters, but I managed to knock all of them out of the dojo except for the leader. Once the old man showed up, he ran away like a baby. Anyway, today, Genos got a call from his doctor, who sounded really excited. He told Genos to come to his lab right away. He offered for me to tag along, but I chose to hang out with you instead."

"Well alright then. Glad you enjoy my company so much."

Saitama pointed King to the empty seat where King should have been sitting. "We're going again. But this time, you're adding a 70% handicap to your character."

"Sure. But I get to be Mewtwo."

"Wow… A mewtwo fan. Why don't I fil-Mewtwo having sex?"

King laughed. "Very funny. We'll see how high and mighty you act when I beat you with all my lives again!"

"Bring it on!" Both of the S-class heroes then started the match, playing to their hearts content. However, after about 3 minutes into their match, Saitama's phone buzzed. He picked up the phone and realized it was from Mumen Rider. The bike rider had asked him for his number after they met up at a restaurant, but he didn't text him too often. Saitama paused the game.

"Why'd you pause?"

"Sorry, but I just got a message from my friend, Mumen Rider. He asked me how I was doing. Usually, he's busy with his hero work and never texts, so I never really gets texts from him." If he was texting him now, that means Mumen was doing something other than hero work. Saitama texted him back, typing into the phone, "Where are you?"

After waiting a few seconds, another message popped up on the chat. Saitama's eyed hardened, and he got up from his seat on the ground. "I have to go."

King's eyes furrowed with concern. "Why? What happened?"

"Mumen Rider just got sent to the hospital. I'm gonna go there and see just how bad he got it. He'd do it for me, so I should return the courtesy. Sorry I gotta cut our battle short, man."

King waved his hand with dismissal. "Nah, man. You're fine. Go on and visit him. We'll catch up in a little bit."

Saitama gave King a small smile and left King to himself.

King took out the smash bros disk and switched the input to Doki Doki Sisters. "Alright. Well, I got a date with the pop star Darren. It better go well, or else I won't get to go up to level 27 and get the new accessory option. Hopefully, nothing big will pop up."

* * *

Genos, the teenage cyborg, just entered the Hero Association's headquarters. Genos had no idea what could have gotten Dr. Kuseno so excited, but whatever it was, it must have been something extraordinary. The Hero Association clerks gave him a warm hello, and then bid him a good day.

While he was walking through the hallways, he began noticing some heroes with bandages sprinting through the corridors. Some other Hero Association attendants had several papers in their hands, with lines etched into their eyes. Genos took these sights in with a foreboding sense of worry for the future. If the Association was already working tirelessly, then who knows how they could possibly handle any more stress. All they could do was hope for the best.

Genos finally reached Bofoi's laboratory. When he was about to open the door, he heard laughs and some glasses clinking. "What the…." Genos reluctantly opened the door, and what he saw was the three scientists clinking glasses and letting out laughs of delight. "Dr. Kuseno? Bofoi? Child Emperor? What's going on? You called?"

The three scientists turned to Genos. "Genos! You got my phone call!"

"What's this about?"

"We finally did it! After hours of overnight analyzing and energy replication, we finally managed to reverse engineer the space pod!"

Genos let out a chuckle of amazement. The good doctor had finally managed to do what he set out to do, and he couldn't have looked happier. "That's terrific news!"

"Now, despite being a pompous knowitall, my brother actually managed to come through." Dr. Kuseno walked back to his brother and wrapped his arm around his brother's shoulder. "If it wasn't for him, I don't think I could have done it."

Bofoi jeered. "I thought that was obvious to everyone..."

Dr. Kuseno unwrapped his arm. "Of course…" The good doctor then turned to Alex, who was drinking Fanta in a glass, the ice cubes in his drink floating around in the orange liquid. "And Alex, you are an amazingly gifted child. Your assistance has been an extreme asset to our studies, and I don't think we could have done this without you." Dr. Kuseno ruffled the S-class hero's hair. "I'm proud of you. And while my brother would rather be crushed by the space pod than admit this, he's very proud of you too."

Bofoi pointed his finger at Dr. Kuseno. "Don't push it."

Alex's face began blushing scarlet red. "Thank you. Your words mean a lot to me." A realization struck Alex's head that he had forgotten. "Oh wait! We forgot to tell him about the scouter technology!"

"Ah yes! Thank you for reminding me!" Dr. Kuseno walked up to the computer system, and up on the monitor appeared the schematics for a scouter. "We also managed to map out the entire system outline for the scouter. Not only that, but we figured out how to increase the durability of the system to allow for higher energy levels. That way, the scouter won't be destroyed when it senses powerful warriors like Saitama."

"Fantastic!"

"What's fantastic?" The four of them turned to see Minister Sitch standing right at the doorway. "Is it alright if I come in?"

"Of course. Come right in."

"Thank you." Sitch entered the room and practically fell in the chair, the tiredness biting his bones. "Garou, the hero hunter, has already defeated Red Nose, Hyottoko, Studless, Mumen Rider, Golden Ball, Spring Mustachio, and the entire tanktop army, including the S-class hero, Tanktop Master. Pray to god that you've had some progress with the alien technology."

"Oh we've made more than progress," said Bofoi. "We've managed to completely duplicate the alien space pod. Within a month, we'll be able to mass produce the space pods and integrate the technology into my machinery."

Sitch's frown broke into a smile, and he felt a wave of relief washing out some of the fear and paranoia that had been building up in him for weeks. He'd been dying to hear at least a shrivel of good news or hopeful messages that would make the road ahead just a tad big brighter. "Thank god. Knowing that takes a little bit of the weight I have off my shoulders."

"Good to hear," said Child Emperor. "By next month, the Hero Association will be stronger than ever, and no monster will be able to harm humanity ever again!"

But in the blink of an eye, the content and hopeful atmosphere that surrounded the group switched to high alert and danger, as rdd lights flashed to life in the laboratory. A deafening alarm went off in the laboratory, forcing the group to cover their ears. "Metal Knight, what's going on?!"

Bofoi sauntered over to his desk and began frantically typing on his keyboard. After about 20 seconds of typing, the alarms were shushed and the red lights were cut out. "Uh-oh."

"What's the matter?" said Sitch.

"I set my satellites to pick up any radio signals emanating from space, and they've just turned up on something." This caught the attention of everyone in the room, and they all shuffled over to Bofoi's side to see what was happening. "The estimated distance from the source is… 350,000 kilometers."

Nobody said a word. Everyone held their breath, praying that this day wasn't already upon them. Sitch's lip was quivering and his eyes were bulging out of their sockets.

Genos was the first one to speak. "Could it just be a meteorite, and what you're intercepting is a malfunctioning satellite?" He said this with almost blissful denial.

Bofoi shook his head. "Not possible. The object is slowing down, not speeding up, and judging by the thermal images my satellite took, it's far too big to be a satellite. There's no question in mind: that's a spaceship. And given its current trajectory, it's probably going to arrive within an hour."

"AN HOUR?!" Sitch could no longer keep his emotions in check, and the burdening weight came crashing down on his shoulders once again. "HOW CAN WE POSSIBLY PREPARE TO FIGHT THE BIGGEST THREAT HUMANITY HAS EVER FACED IN AN HOUR?!"

"Minister, you need to calm down!" Genos grabbed the minister by the shoulders and shook him hard. "We need to call every S-class hero for a meeting. The day of reckoning is upon us. Now whether we're ready or not isn't whats important. What IS important is to know that the Hero Association is all that stands between humanity's salvation and destruction, and the Association can't function properly if you're not there to lead. Now take a deep breath, and maintain control of your emotions."

Sitch sat motionless while Genos had his hands grasped on his arms. He took a deep breath in, then out, letting the voice of reason and patience back into his mind. "Thank you, Demon Cyborg. You're right. As long as we have the full might of the S-class at our disposal, everything should work out in the end."

But then, out of the blue, one of the A branch operators came barging through the laboratory, looking sweaty and out of breathe. "Minister Sitch! Minister Sitch! I have terrible news!"

"Jesus Christ, what is it now?"

"Multiple reports of mysterious beings attacking civilians are flooding in through our hotlines all at once. The A-class heroes are struggling to fend them off, and B and C class heroes are having no better luck."

The tension in the room was mixed with a smidge of shock when Sitch threw one of the glasses across the room, spilling fanta and ice cubes all on the floor. "NO! HOW CAN THIS BE HAPPENING ALL AT ONCE?! THERE'S NO WAY WE CAN HANDLE BOTH THESE THREATS AT THE SAME TIME! WE CAN'T!" Sitch buried his face in his hands and yanked his hair has hard as he could. Shortly after, his grip loosened and he slumped in the chair. Everyone waited for the minister's response, their palms sweaty and their stomachs tied in knots, uneasy with how angry and out of control the Minister, their leader, was acting. Finally, after what seemed like an eternity of waiting, the Minister got up from his seat and somberly walked to the door of the laboratory.

"Contact every S-class hero here and order them to arrive as quickly as humanly possible for them. For all remaining heroes, call them and tell them that for every monster they defeat, a reward will be given. Show them the chart with the system I used for the criminals. This will give the heroes a larger incentive to combat every mysterious being they might come across." The group nodded and started moving at a sluggish pace. "WE ONLY HAVE AN HOUR! MOVE IT!" The people gulped and went from walking to practically sprinting, doing what their superior told them.

"Brother, once the ship gets in Earth's atmosphere, I'm going to fire my missiles and see if that has any sort of effect on the spaceship. You should probably go back to your lab and gather any weapons you might have lying around."

"No brother. It's time." Bofoi's head shifted back to his brother, and the instant he saw the intensity in his eyes, he understood what he meant. But so soon? Was his brother really that desperate that he would resort to such a dangerous and risky? "Are you sure?"

"We don't have a choice."

Bofoi ran his hand through his hair. "Alright. But you know you're going to have to tell Genos about this."

The younger brother lamented this. The younger brother had no idea what kind of effect this secret would have on Genos, but at this point, the fate of humanity was more important than keeping this secret from Genos. It was time to tell him the truth. "Alright. You just focus on preparing the missiles for launch."

"Understood. Now get going."

The two brothers solemnly shook their heads and went to work. Dr. Kuseno slowly trudged over to Genos, who was impatiently using his cellphone. "Genos, what are you doing?"

"I'm attempting to call my master. We need him now more than ever. But he's not answering his phone, and I don't know why."

Dr. Kuseno grasped Genos's phone and set it on the counter? "Doctor? What are you doing?"

"There's something I have to show you, and it's of utmost importance." The intensity in his voice was something unheard of with Dr. Kuseno, and if he was choosing to tell him this over calling Saitama, this must have been as serious as the good doctor was telling him. "Ok."

Dr. Kuseno motioned him to a large desk near the space pod, which was already covered with half a dozen layers or papers, discarded algorithms, and cans of soda and takeout boxes. "What is this about?"

The doctor tapped his fingers against each other. "Genos, there's something that I've been meaning to tell you, but I wanted to wait until everything was in place so you wouldn't get too anxious."

"What are you talking about?"

"Let me show you."

* * *

 _Until Chapter 14! JK, just click on the next chapter button._


	14. Dragonic Devil

The birds were chirping, and the sun was shining brighter than ever on this momentous day. The Space Emperor was sitting calmly in his hover chair, enjoying a fresh glass of Cabernet Sauvignon from a planet in the Black Eye Galaxy. He had been patiently waiting for a week, voyaging through the empty depths of the cosmos to search for a warrior of untold might, with a power level of -. How he had managed to survive such an annoyingly long wait, he had no idea.

Vegeta was really starting to get on his nerves. Ever since he had come back from his mission, he would either walk in circles around the ship, or would simply waste his day away inside the tavern, drinking by himself to his hearts content. And whenever any soldier would go up and talk to him, he'd give a deep animal-like growl and force them away. In fact, one of the foot soldiers lost his life after he mocked Vegeta's solemn drinking and insinuated that Vegeta actually missed his general. What a spectacle that had been, and what a fool the soldier had been for picking a fight he couldn't win.

But at last, his wait would finally come to an end. For they had finally entered the atmosphere of this wretched mud ball, where he would be free to pick and plunder this planet's riches and warriors as he so pleased.

"Lord Frieza!" Zarbon's voice interrupted his thoughts with some dire news. "We have incoming projectiles headed straight for the ship!"

"Really?" Frieza floated over to the front of the room, and sure enough, there were several tiny little dots with flaming ends flying straight for the mother ship. "I see…"

"Zarbon, Dodoria, take care of those little toys for me while I finish my wine tasting."

His henchmen straightened and put their hands to their chest. "Yes Lord Frieza!"

The two henchmen went sprinting out of the room and headed for the hatch opening at the front of the ship. The hatch door slid open, and the two henchmen were met with an onslaught of high-speed wind and thin lines of cirrus clouds. The wind nipped at both of their eyes, forcing them to somewhat shield their eyes.

The incoming missiles continued to hurtle toward the ship, growing considerably faster as the seconds went by. Both henchmen put their hands out in front of each other and began yelling as they focused their energy to their palms. The missiles were now 800, 700, 400, 200, 100, 10 meters away from the ship. But just as the missile tips reached the front of the ship, Zarbon and Dodoria fired their energy blasts. In mere seconds, the missiles were destroyed, vaporized by the extraterrestrials ki attacks.

Chunks of debris and fire were flying through the air. Several chunks of the debris and fire flew straight into the two henchmen, but to them, it was like a bunch of pebbles were being thrown at them. They stood at the edge of the ship with crossed arms and serious faces. "So Zarbon, how long until we make it to the surface?" said Dodoria.

"I think about 20, maybe 30 minutes," replied Zarbon. "Then the fun can finally begin."

* * *

Back at the Hero Association prison box, the two assassins were sitting inside their prison cell, quietly thinking to themselves, when something big hit Nappa. "Oh shit." The saiyan general felt a huge spike of energy flooding his entire brain. Whatever this was, it was really powerful. No, wait. He concentrated harder, and the noticed six, maybe seven very high power levels. In fact, one of the energies he felt made the others look like pushovers. "Could it be…"

"What's the matter with you Nappa?" questioned Sonic, who was still in his bed. It had been 3 days since Kuto had come to visit him. Ever since that spat between the two ninjas, things hadn't been as venomously hateful as they used to be. Sure, they still argued like hell, and threats to each other's lives were still really common, but it was as if that spat with Kuto had created a link of respect between each other. They might not have even seen it, but it was there. It was like an invisible, tiny string, keeping them bound together with respect, however small it was.

Nappa let out a chuckle. "Your planet's screwed."

Sonic propped his back up onto the wall and looked at Nappa nervously. "What do you mean?"

Nappa stretched his back and crossed his arms behind his head. "Wait and see. You'll find out soon enough…"

* * *

While Frieza and his lackeys were busy up in the sky, the Monster Association was bustling about underground. Orochi had been informed about the space emperor's arrival through Gyoro Gyoro and his energy sensing technique. Not only that, but his second-in-commands clairvoyance predicted exactly when and where they were going to land, so he had already sent his elite soldiers to wait for the space emperor's arrival.

Orochi continued to sit in his throne, pondering whether or not they would have enough monsters to complete their plans, when Gyoro Gyoro broke through his train of thought. "Master Orochi, I've sent out our secondary forces, and our main forces are waiting for my command."

"Good. Oh, and Gyoro."

"Yes?"

"I believe this occasion requires you in person."

At first, Gyoro Gyoro didn't understand what he meant, but then it hit him. Or should he say, her. Without warning, Gyoro Gyoro suddenly went limp and passed out on the floor. Then, a faint sound of clopping high heels came from the right hallway. Those shoes belonged to a young human woman. The girl had aqua-blue wavy hair that went a little past her shoulders. The hair matched beautifully with her emerald green eyes, which were covered by a pair of glasses.

"Hello, Psykos. It's been quite some time since you've shown your human form."

"No doubt." Her voice sounded frail and high-pitched, which did an effective job of hiding the true malice and mental instability she felt everyday of her life.

Psykos motioned to the exit. "So shall we go?"

Orochi pushed himself off of the throne. The armchairs on his throne were scratched by Orochi's long claws, and the ground around the throne shook in fear, for the Monster King had finally risen from his throne, and whoever was in his way, would experience pain the devil himself would find a nightmare.

"Yes. It's time that the Monster King rightly establishes a new order of power to this world. To this world, and beyond."

* * *

Back on the ground, things were more hectic than ever. The Hero Association was scrambling about, trying to gather as many heroes to fend off against the tiger and demon level monsters that were popping up in the cities. Not only that, but the Hero Association hospitals were getting more and more patients, and every day, heroes of higher and higher rank were being admitted, forcing the doctors to work later and later hours. In fact, the nurses thought they were being pranked when they saw the papers for one of the patients: the S-class hero Tanktop Master. If an S-class hero was out of commission, it was horrible news for everyone.

Saitama was walking through the hospital in M-city, with a bag of goods he just bought at a market, and was getting a first-hand experience of the craziness occurring at the hospitals. Saitama couldn't walk more than 5 feet without jostling a nurse, doctor, or a hero in some sort of bandage or cast. Honestly, he didn't know how some heroes could be hurt so badly, they'd have to go to the hospital. I mean, Saitama had gotten his ass handed to him a bunch of times, and all it took for him was a few nights of sleep, cotton swabs, and some Tylenol. Guess not all heroes could handle pain like he could.

When he reached the 2nd floor, the tingling sensation in his brain came flooding back to him, just as he had felt when the two saiyans had showed up. No, it was like someone had mixed adrenaline and steroids, shook it all up in a cup of energy, than poured it directly into Saitama's brain. Saitama stopped dead center in the hallway. He was tempted to go sprinting out the door and head straight for that huge surge of energy, but he sighed. Last time he followed his guts, he'd been let down on a pretty big scale, and while the experiences outside of the house were pretty good, the battle itself was anticlimactic, like more anticlimactic than usual. And besides, he already came all this way to see Mumen Rider, so it seemed like kind of a dick move on his part to just bail out of the blue. Either way, the other heroes could probably handle it. So he continued walking, ignoring the still growing sensation in his brain.

He eventually found Mumen Rider sitting in one of the hospital rooms on the third floor. Inside, Mumen Rider was covered with a blanket. He had a neck brace wrapped around his neck, a large bandage tied around his forehead, and his face was covered in tiny Band-Aids. Although since he was still wearing his glasses, Saitama was pretty sure he was sleeping. "Yo Mumen! How are you hangin?"

The C-class hero was startled out of his deep sleep, and a smile came across his face when he realized that Saitama had come to visit. Mumen Rider gave his friend an amicable wave."Hey Saitama! I didn't think you got my text."

Saitama's lips curved upwards into a small smile. "I just wanted to stop by, just to see if you managed to recover or not."

"Well thanks. You really didn't have to. But I'm still glad you came, Saitama."

"No problem man. So I'm just gonna put the bananas right over here."

Mumen Rider gave Saitama a quizzical look. "You brought bananas?" The hero nodded his head, then peeled off the skin of one of the bananas and started chewing.

Mumen Rider's look became even more quizzical. "Those aren't for me?"

"Oh, sorry. Here, take a banana." Saitama ripped a banana off and handed it to Mumen Rider. The top ranking C-class hero hesitantly took the banana and started helping himself. "Thanks."

Saitama continued. "So anyway, I heard on the Hero Association's news that there was something kinda big going on," said Saitama, with his mouth still full of chewed banana. "And whatever it was, that's what put you in the hospital. Apparently, that monster also put 12 heroes in the hospital."

"No. The Association ranked him as a monster, but he's actually human."

"Really? It's not a monster?" Saitama's brows scrunched. "So it's just some punk,…" said Saitama, disappointment clearly evident in his voice.

"No. He carries the name of a monster, but he still looks human. Are you following me?" Saitama nodded. "He was strong. Like scary strong, especially for a human being…"

"Huh… So compared to that fishguy you fought before, who'd you think is stronger?" Mumen Rider gazed up at the ceiling, pondering Saitama's question with deep analysis. "The Deep Sea King was quite the monster, no doubt about it. But with this, something felt different…" Saitama's eyebrow rose, not quite understanding what the C-class hero meant.

"Although I was only on the receiving end and unable to land any actual blows, I could still feel a difference. His strength was different… How can I put it… His "technique" was more refined."

"He practices martial arts to the highest degree. He studied under Silver Fang." The two heroes heard a third voice chiming into their conversation, emanating from just on the other side of the curtain. Mumen Rider pulled the curtain open, and hiding behind it was the S-class hero, Tanktop Master.

"That guy… He just barged into the conversation out of the blue. Do you know him?"

"He's the S-class hero, Tanktop Master."

Saitama tried to remember the name, then it came to him. "Oh I remember now! I saw it on the news. You were the guy who got your ass kicked the hardest!"

The S-class hero's temper flared up. "AW COME ON! AT LEAST MENTION THAT I DIDN'T GO DOWN WITHOUT A FIGHT!" shouted Tanktop Master. "Shit…" Tanktop Master bent his head down and slapped his palm to his forehead. "Why am I even talking about this?" The S-class hero grimaced at the memory of his defeat. "That youngster caught me completely off guard. His martial arts is going to be a really big problem if it isn't dealt with. Even though I've taken out countless monsters with a single hit, I couldn't beat him…"

Saitama walked over to the S-class hero and pulled a banana off the root. "Here, have a banana?"

"Hm? Oh, thanks…" Tanktop Master peeled the skin off and started eating, not wanting to refuse this gift from… Wait a second. He remembered that guy from the S-class meeting. Not only that, but he saw on the Hero Association website that he had been moved from B-class all the way up to S-class Rank 4. "Are you him? The supposed hero swindler who steals credit from S-class heroes?"

"Yea…"

"And you really got moved up to S-class?"

"Uh-huh."

"How? Did you bribe the Hero Association?"

"Bribes?" Upon hearing such an accusatory suggestion, Saitama laughed and clutched his chest. "I barely have enough money to pay rent, much less bribe someone to move me up to S-class."

If that was the case, then Tankop Master couldn't explain it. The only possible reasoning for this was that he really was as powerful as S-class heroes. "Caped Baldy…"

"It's not Caped Baldy anymore…" A vein on Saitama's forehead began throbbing, and his pupils dilated until his eyes appeared almost completely white. "My real name's Saitama, and my new hero name is One Punch Man."

Tanktop Master held out a hand in apology. "Sorry. Anyway, do you really have physical abilities of an S-class her-"

A buzzing noise interjected into the conversation, taking Saitama's attention."Hold on just a sec." It was the phone inside his pocket that began ringing, so Saitama pulled it out of his pocket. "Yello?"

Mumen Rider leaned over to Tanktop Master's bed and whispered in his ear, "Saitama isn't a fraud. I know firsthand. I was there when he fought the Deep Sea King. The monster was at full strength when Saitama beat him, I'm sure of it."

Tanktop Master took this information in, his heart racing at the thought of a hero so powerful that was put so low on the Hero Association's rankings. If it was true, then Tanktop Master felt like a fool for buying into appearances over deeds. That wasn't what the Tanktop Army represented.

"Saitama?"

"Who is this?"

"It's Dr. Kuseno."

"Who?"

Saitama heard a sigh through the phone. "The guy who got you the Chinese takeout!"

"Oh yea! So what's going on?"

"It's finally happening. The prophecy is coming into fruition. An alien ship has entered our atmosphere, and is going to arrive 100 miles north of A-city in about 15 minutes; it's the Devil of Frost."

Saitama gasped. "ARE YOU SERIOUS?!" The bald hero slapped his forehead. "I NEED TO GET OVER THERE RIGHT NOW!"

"What? What?" The two heroes sitting on the beds had their heads raised and their bodies leaning forward. "What's going on?!"

"Atthththehhhahha!" Saitama shushed the two heroes with his hand. "Be quiet!"

"There's more," continued Dr. Kuseno.

"What? WHAT IS IT?!" said Saitama with a voice that bordered on shouting.

"Apparently, there are dozens of monsters attacking multiple cities at once at the same time! The Hero Association is practically exhausted with the number of heroes they've had to deploy. So Minister Sitch has called an S-class meeting right now!"

Saitama let out a soft gasp. "I'LL TRY AND GET THERE AS SOON AS POSSIBLE! FIRST I NEED TO GET MY UNIFORM!"

"Wait, what?" Before Dr. Kuseno could question the lunacy of Saitama's reasoning, Saitama hung up the phone. "Sorry guys, but I need to get going. To sum things up, the prophecy that Shibobelo person talked about is finally happening, and there's an S-class meeting about to start that I need to attend."

Tanktop Master let out a gasp. "Then I need to get over there! I'm going with you!" Tanktop Master's reluctance in Saitama's abilities was now completely forgotten, and he practically scrambled to get out of bed. But before he could get both his legs on the floor, he recoiled, the muscles in his body tensing in pain.

Seeing this, Saitama pushed him back into the bed, leaving Tanktop Master dumbfounded with Saitama's ability to push him back with such force. "Sorry man, but you're too injured. You gotta stay in bed. Besides, you'd slow me down. Catch you on the flip side." Saitama made way to the door, but then he stopped midway. "On second thought, walking down all those stairs is gonna take too long. They can probably patch up the ceiling. With those crazy-expensive hospital bills, they can pay for anything."

The heroes in bed looked at each other, not understanding what he meant. But their question was quickly answered, when small chunks of ceiling fell on their laps and heads. They looked up, and saw a hole about 3 feet long that kept on going for 7 floors straight.

"My god," exclaimed a shocked Tanktop Master, "He really isn't a swindler."

"Lets just hope that Saitama's able to deal with the monster before it's too late."

Both heroes sighed. They could only hope.

* * *

Sitch had it just about here with some of the heroes. So far, even with the new roads that spanned our for hundreds of mile which made travel to and from the HQ worlds easier, the S-class heroes still couldn't make it on time.

Inside the meeting room, the heroes were quiet. Some of them had dirt smudges on their faces, their uniforms slightly tattered, their faces grim and tired, and their patience rather thin. With the abnormally high rise of mysterious beings, some of the S-class heroes could simply not take a break from their duties, forcing them to work days on end. But all of them answered the call when Sitch demanded an emergency meeting. Sweet Mask was sitting on a spare seat at the edge of the table, just right next to Puri-Puri-Prisoner. Even Bang's older brother, Bomb, had realized that this was such a monumental threat. He and his brother were already busy searching for Garou, but both knew Garou would have to wait, however much they didn't want to.

But out of all of the people in the room, Sitch was the one who was most busy and the one with the most stress mounted on his back, per usual. He was discussing with some of the branch operators, almost yelling at them with orders to contact every A, B, and C-class hero possible with the new reward system to get them active as soon as possible. Not only that, but so far, One Punch Man, Demon Cyborg, Tanktop Tiger, and Blast hadn't or couldn't arrive, and there was absolutely nothing Sitch could do about it.

However, something that the heroes, even Sitch, weren't expecting was that Metal Knight was there, in person. Everyone looked at him, expecting a much more handsome and young scientist as the operator in secret behind all those drones. "So, what made you finally decide coming to these meetings yourself was worth the wait?" said Tatsumaki, her snooty attitude as present as ever.

"Don't mock me, girl. In case your diminutive brain hasn't comprehended this yet, but the fate of this entire planet is at stake.

Her face twisted in rage. Just as Tatsumaki was about to throw Bofoi across the room, Minister Sitch asked the elderly scientist, "Bofoi, where is Genos? He of all people should be present."

The old scientist ignored the esper and gave his attention to the minister. "Sitch, Genos is having an intensely serious conversation with my brother right now, and I can personally say that you don't have to worry about him not showing up."

"Yes," said Child Emperor. "We can begin without them."

"Hold on. Where's Saitama?" Everyone turned to Atomic Samurai, who held his katana in his hand and in his other hand, had a firm grip on the table. "Unfortunately, he couldn't make it for this meeting."

"I want to fight him in a duel. He took my spot in S-class, and I want to see just how powerful he thinks he is. Nobody takes my spot without a fight. And besides, theres no way he could move up so quickly in the ranks like that."

"Hey Sitch, I had to leave Q-City in the hands of a bunch of B-class heroes," said Watchdog Man, looking somewhat irked for once. "And I don't want to leave my territory defenseless, so can we wrap this up quickly?"

"What the hell are we doin here anyway?" said Metal Bat. "There's no way this prophecy can really be legit! Besides, these meetings keep on interrupting with my schedule! I was playing four square with my little sister-"

"THAT'S ENOUGH!" Sitch screamed at the top of his lungs and slammed the table with both of his hands as hard as he possibly could, eliciting a jump from all of the heroes. "I CAN'T DEAL WITH YOUR PETTY SQUABBLING ANYMORE! A GOD-LEVEL THREAT IS LITERALLY MINUTES AWAY FROM ARRIVING! CAN'T YOU UNDERSTAND THAT THE WORLD ITSELF IS IN THE PALM OF OUR HANDS! AND INSTEAD OF TAKING THIS SERIOUSLY, YOU'RE ACTING LIKE CHILDREN WHO WANT TO PLAY WITH THEIR TOYS INSTEAD OF DOING THEIR HOMEWORK! SO JUST FOR ONCE, LISTEN WHAT I HAVE TO SAY SO WE CAN ACTUALLY SAVE LIVES!"

This unexpected string of insults actually managed to quiet all of the heroes down, and every single one of them sat down in their seats with serious faces and open ears. Even Tatsumaki was taken aback by Sitch's anger.

Sitch took a deep breath in and pinched the bridge of his nose. "I'm glad you could make it here, and I appreciate your assistance in dealing with the rising number of demon level threats in the cities. I'd also like to thank Sweet Mask and Bang's brother, Bomb, for coming with us to this meeting." The two powerful fighters bowed their heads in respect and said nothing.

"Now LISTEN VERY CAREFULLY." Sitch's voice deepened, and he held a finger up to all the heroes. "An alien spaceship is going to land about 100 miles north of A-city in 10 MINUTES! Unfortunately, as you might know, monsters are attacking multiple cities at once. As a result, not all the S-class heroes can simply abandon the ongoing battles in these cities. So, Zombieman, Watchdog Man, Drive Knight, and Pig God, you will continue to eliminate as many monsters in cities as possible. Focus on solely efficiency. You will be given constant updates through the Hero Association branch operators." The four heroes gave firm nods to their superior.

"The rest of you: Tornado, Silver Fang, Atomic Samurai, Child Emperor, Metal Knight, King, Superalloy Darkshine, Flashy Flash, Metal Bat, Puri-Puri-Prisoner, Sweet Mask, and Bomb. You will all be the front force in the fight against humanity's greatest threat so far. Is that clear?"

"Yes!" said every hero in unison.

"You will all be given radio earpieces to tell you exactly where the mysterious beings are located." Outside the conference room, workers had small earpieces laced around their fingers. "Get a move on! Every second wasted could mean the deaths of innocent civilians!"

The heroes all ran through the door and took the earpieces from the workers before the workers even had a chance to wish them good luck.

However, while all the S-class heroes went running down the right corridor, Metal Knight and Child Emperor went walking through the left corridor back down to Bofoi's laboratory.

Sitch realized this as they walked out the door and went sprinting in their direction.

"Metal Knight! Child Emperor! Where are you going?!" shouted Sitch through the hallway.

The two scientists turned around to Sitch. "We need to help my brother with something important!"

"What could be more important than humanity?"

The two scientists' faces remained stoic. "Dr. Kuseno and I are working on a weapon. Something that even a God level threat would have to acknowledge as powerful. And my brother needs our help and Demon Cyborg's help to put the finishing touches. Once it's finished, I guarantee you it will put an end to the Devil of Frost."

A machine capable of beating a God level threat? It sounded too good to be true. If that was the case, there was no way in hell Sitch would interrupt them. "Ok. But please remember-"

"I know! Fate of humanity! I understand the concept!" said Bofoi, interrupting his boss.

Sitch gave a final salute to the S-class heroes. "Good luck!"

Bofoi smirked. "I don't need luck. I've got logic." And like that, the genius heroes sprinted off to finish the greatest weapon in human history.

* * *

Frieza's spaceship had already descended into the troposphere. Zarbon, Dodoria, Cui, Appule, and Vegeta were all waiting at the exit of the ship, some desperate to get in on some head hunting, others preferring to have a cold one to numb the pain of their defeat at a certain bald bastard's plans.

"So do you think that there're any fighters who're waiting down there for us?" said Dodoria.

"I think there's your answer," replied Vegeta, pointing downward.

All five fighters craned their heads downward to see just exactly who had planned a surprise party for their arrival. But what they saw was quite possibly the most bizarre group of fighters any of them had ever seen. Each of them was shaded with different colors, different faces, and different sizes. It was like a collection of random monsters and ghouls were concocted inside a psychopath's imagination, than sprouted out to life. If their eyesight was working correctly, one of them was literally a floating glob of flowing water with eyes, and another was a giant, yellow, most probably anthropomorphic cat standing on its two hind legs.

"Lord Frieza! We're about to land! You would not believe the kind of freaky monsters that are down there waiting for us!" shouted Dodoria.

"Calm yourself Dodoria! Although I find your boasts quite precarious, as you are quite possibly one of the most comical looking aliens I have come across in my years as Space Emperor."

Dodoria's four cohorts snickered at Dodoria, but Dodoria simply shoved them and kept his mouth shut.

"Lord Frieza, we're preparing the landing procedure!" said one of the foot soldiers from the control center.

"Good. It can finally begin…"

* * *

Bursts of wind came crashing down from the ship. The dragon-level monsters were taken aback by the ship's large size and sleek, circular design. A dozen small legs popped out of the ship's bottom hull, and the ship's speed further decelerated. The ship then finally touched down onto the ground with a gentle drop.

"So do you think we should bust in there and kick their asses?" said Black Sperm.

"No," replied Orochi. "Let's be patient."

The ship's top hatch slowly opened up, and out came five warriors. The two warriors at both ends had purple skin, but one had a long head and orange dots, and the other had two holes for ears, and both of them were radiating confidence. To the monsters, those two didn't seem like much. The warrior to the 2nd right had jet-black hair and a tail that was laced around his waist, but unlike the others, the monsters could tell he wasn't particularly enjoying himself. The 2nd warrior to the left was pink and fat, with small spikes protruding out of his entire body, like a giant plump pink ball. But the one that surprised them the most was the middle warrior. The middle warrior had very handsome features, with flowing green hair tied around at its end, and a smile that said he took pride in his looks. Fuhrer Ugly clenched his fists and snarled at the alien's handsome appearance. It was the one thing he hated more than anything: good lookers. And when the alien got a good look at him, he appeared just as disgusted by Fuhrer Ugly's appearance. Looks like those two weren't going to be BFF's. Then, following them out of the spaceship, dozens upon dozens of soldiers streamed out of the hatch. Orochi assumed that they were all mere grunts who worked for the big boss.

But then, a final fighter came out of the hatch, floating in the air with a hover chair. As soon as this final fighter came floating out of the chair, the group of warriors looked at each other with confused faces. Well, everyone except Homeless Emperor and Psykos. It was as if they were all wondering when the final boss would show his face, because there's no way that such a small creature like that could be the devil of frost they had come to fear. He couldn't have stood more than five feet tall. He had very large black spikes sticking out of his head. His armor was purple, with yellow shoulder pads extending from his shoulders and waist. He had pink legs and a pink tail, with white hands that appeared like gloves. But what was most odd was the pair of red lips he had. This, combined with all the other features, made it hard to even tell whether "he" was even a "he".

Once everyone realized this was the dreaded space emperor they had amassed the Monster Association's strongest warriors for, they all started laughing. Gouketsu, Nyan, Gums, Black Sperm, Fuhrer Ugly, even Evil Natural Water, who was rumored to be triggered by the emotions of the people around it, started howling. Well, with Evil Natural Water, it was more like chortling. Even Orochi let out a few chuckles. But Homeless Emperor and Psykos were not as willing to let themselves be fooled by his appearance. Under that frail body had to lay some sort of awesome power he wielded like a weapon, and neither one of them wanted to particularly find out firsthand what it was.

Frieza let out a hum of curiosity. "And what contracted you to start snickering like children?"

Their laughs somewhat died down when they heard his voice. Well, that certainly proved he was a "he". His voice sounded patronizing and rancorous, like the cold-hearted lizard he appeared to be. It was like piercing ice, cutting through their black hearts.

Black Sperm was the first to answer Frieza's question. "It's just that we were expecting a bit more. I mean, from what Psykos and Orochi told me, you were supposed to be this fucking demon of ice who controlled the entire galaxy! But you look like you couldn't even reach to a tiger-level threat!"

Frieza's fake smile faded, replaced by an angry sneer. Frieza didn't understand what he meant by "tiger-level threat", but he assumed it was something very unimpressive. "Oh, is that so? Zarbon, remind me to serve that one's platter on a head first."

"Of course."

Dodoria's rage boiled at the monster's insolence. "These posers aren't getting away with insulting Lord Frieza!" Dodoria turned to his two cohorts. "Cui, Appule, you wanna join me in wiping the smug look off their faces?"

"Sure!"

"Why not!" Letting out eager chuckles, the two purple aliens stretched their muscles, pulling their arms and twisting their feet just to trigger a response from the monsters.

"What about you, Zarbon? Wanna do a little tag team?"

Zarbon, unlike his much more vulgar and hardheaded friend, showed hesitance in engaging a full out frontal assault without knowing his enemies. To him, the warriors didn't seem like third-rate fighters. Unbeknownst to him, Vegeta was just as unsure in a reckless attack. On one hand, while his defeat by the bald bastard's hand factored into some of his hesitance, Vegeta could feel a very faint, but nonetheless dark presence emanating from all of them.

"Dodoria, I think you might be underestimating-"

"Sorry! Can't hear you! Too busy defending Lord Frieza's honor!" And like that, Dodoria and the other two lackeys charged the group of monsters.

"I'm going for the Black jizzrag!" shouted Dodoria.

"I call the hideous freak!" yelled Cui.

"Which one's the hideous one?!" yelled Appule back to Cui.

"HAHA! NICE ONE APPU-" Cui was cut mid sentence by a right hook square in his stomach from Fuhrer Ugly. The Frieza soldier had no time to react; for Cui, the movement was instantaneous. It was like the breath was completely taken out of him, rendering him immobile. Appule, being the lower-level, less experienced Frieza soldier he was, made a foolish mistake by turning his attention away from the battle. Seeing this elementary mistake on Appule's part, Nyan, the yellow-furred cat, attacked with a lethal barrage of slashes, using his banana size claws as his primary weapons of choice. Like his appearance might have hinted at, his movements were cat-like. He would jump back and forth on all fours, and then pounce at Appule by loading his jump with his back legs. Within perhaps 10 seconds, Appule and Cui were already down.

Dodoria swung a series of punches at full power, but Black Sperm dodged every single one, his face remaining pompous and arrogant. Dodoria quickly realized that this was an opponent he couldn't defeat, but not before Black Sperm engaged a counter attack. In less than 3 seconds, Black Sperm returned fire with an onslaught of deadly punches and kicks. Dodoria had no way of defending himself against his speed, and his fat layers of skin weren't thick enough to nullify the power of Black Sperm's punches.

The battle was over before it even began. All three of Frieza's soldiers were down on the ground, unconscious and beaten. The three monsters who stood over their decrepit bodies laughed at the pathetically easily victories, throwing them across to the side like sports towels.

"What's the matter? Cat got your tongue?" said Nyan. The cat-like monster suddenly had a tongue in the palm of his hand. "Because it's probably me." Did they even dare look to see whose tongue had been ripped out of their mouth? The two henchmen almost vomited when they saw what he did next: he actually ate the dismembered tongue.

Zarbon and Vegeta were visibly stunned and disgusted at the same time. Neither of them had seen their movements whatsoever. It didn't even look like they were using their full power, not even close. If that was really the case, then neither of them stood any better chance against these freaks.

Frieza's eyebrows arched. "My my… It appears that your tiny sperm like body wasn't built only for long weekends. You and your companions do appear to have some fighting skills. But it won't make a difference in the long run."

"Mocking me, are you? Well then, Mr. High and Mighty, why don't you prove that you're not just a tiny little lizard and show me what you're made of?"

"Fine. I'll indulge you, Mr. Higher and Mightier. And given that my other two lackeys right beside me were turning heads and tails trying to follow your movements, I'd say they would be just as big a waste of your time."

"Probably."

Frieza then stood up from his hover chair, gently floating out from his floating throne and down onto the ground to entertain the Black Sperm. Frieza turned his head back up to his foot soldiers. "All of you! Fan out and do a thorough investigation of the lifeforms on this planet! I want to make sure that I'm not missing something important!"

"YES, LORD FRIEZA!" The soldiers immediately flew as fast as they could, while the monsters just stood there and watched the soldiers fly above them. "Shouldn't we stop them?" said Nyan.

"Let them go. They're inconsequential compared to what is going at this moment."

"Of course, Master Orochi," replied Nyan.

"Alright, I'm going first round!" Before anybody had the chance to object, Black Sperm walked in between the space pirates and the monsters, staring straight at Frieza. All of the combatants watched in eager and somewhat nervous anticipation, waiting for the battle between these sadistic, ego-driven monsters to begin. The wind whipped and whirled around the fighters. Both were waiting for the opportune moment to strike, for the other to make a move.

Then, Black Sperm moved his leg to see if Frieza would make the first move, which he did in a second. And like that, both warriors lunged for their opponent with pure intent to kill. The battle had begun.

The emperor and dragon-level monster were fighting on apparently equal footing. Both of them were exchanging powerful punches, but none of them able to do any serious damage to their opponent. As they unleashed their power, the ground below them started to quake. Tiny fissures began forming under them, to which neither of them noticed.

Unfortunately for Black Sperm, Frieza was more clever, more conniving, and had more combat experience thanks to his father's teachings. Frieza let out a feint series of attacks to Black Sperm's head to momentarily distract him. Then, Frieza leaped to his right, bent down, than sliced Black Sperm's body straight down the middle with his hand alone. Zarbon and Vegeta stood dumbfounded, along with the rest of the monsters watching the battle. Frieza let out a short laugh. "Looks like his sperm count's down to zero. Don't let his girlfriend down too hard."

"Oh, on the contrary, you just increased my sperm stock." Black Sperm was standing right behind Frieza. Well, Black Sperm's were now standing right behind Frieza, both with crossed arms and faces that said they were enjoying themselves, and without a single scratch on their bodies.

"Hmm? A very unique ability. I see I'll just have to try harder." Frieza thrust forward, his fingernails primed and ready to slash. The Black Sperm's couldn't react. Somehow, he'd gotten even faster, and he had no reaction time. But it didn't matter. Every time Frieza chopped one in half, 10 more emerged from the chunks of the chopped Black Sperm to take the fallen one's place. Within a minute, there were over ten thousand Black Sperm's surrounding Frieza.

"Who says a man can't do a woman's job?" said Black Sperm.

"This is… rather unfortunate." Frieza took a defensive stance, and the sperm cells pounced. The Black Sperms kept coming and coming, and there was seemingly no end. Even with his superior strength speed, Frieza couldn't keep up with the copy's acceptable speed and rising numbers, and eventually, he was receiving blows on every part of his body. Every single sperm clone had equal power and speed, and no matter how many times he sliced them apart, they wouldn't stop multiplying, making it almost impossible to properly defend himself.

Frieza's face contorted, his neck veins and forehead veins throbbing against his skins. "Damn it Damn it! I'm done for!"

Black Sperm saw this, and felt his soul light up. "Haha… HAHAHAHAHAHAHHA!" The Black Sperm's roared with ecstasy; the victors were already decided.

But then, as quickly as his frown came, it vanished. "Just kidding."

"Wait, what?" The Black Sperms looked at each other with somewhat concerned looks, wondering what the hell he meant.

Frieza grinned, flying into the air as he did, a purple aura beginning to shimmer around Frieza's body. The Black Sperms then noticed a red ball of energy forming in the palm of Frieza's hand, becoming brighter and denser every second.

"Do you know what I call this attack?"

"What?" said the Black Sperm army.

"Spermicide." In a blinding flash, the red ball of energy was released, consuming the Black Sperm's and the entire valley around them.

* * *

 _There we go guys! I hope you enjoyed the chapter! Gave you a little taste of what's to come, just to please the people who have been eagerly and patiently waiting for Frieza to arrive. I figure I owe that at the least. To answer the comment of NeoNazo, the part between Sonic and Flashy Flash wasn't webcomic. I just made it up because they have WAY too many similarities and contrasting differences to not be related. Both have names that relate to speed, both are ninjas, both know the wind blade kick, and both are handy with katanas. Coincidence? I think not. Murata himself even said the two are somewhat related._

 _Oh, and here is a warning: in most of the oncoming chapters, I am going to be mixing a smidge of TFS personality into the storyline and the characters. Just adds to the One Punch vibe. Well then, keep yourselves on the edge of your seats until chapter 14!_


	15. Kings and Emperors

_After all this time, I finally released the new chapter! It was a very hard task, and I had a lot of tiny helpers to help me, but I think you'll find the climax of this battle very enjoyable. So here it is, Chapter 15!_

* * *

The earth bucked and rocked in the fury of Frieza's spermicidal energy wave. Psykos quickly put up a psychic barrier to protect all of the spectating monsters from the black turmoil of smoke rising, engulfing the surrounding valley in a flurry of dark ash and debris.

All the while, Frieza surveyed the damage from up above. The emperor had to admit, if he had to rely solely on his physical attacks, he probably would have lost. His ability to multiply was something he had never encountered on any planet before. One could call his ability exceptional.

Frieza perched down from his place high up in the sky, and let out another hum or surprise. The Black Sperm army was bleeding black blood, or what remained of the army. More than half of the army had vanished off the face of the planet, and almost all of the remaining army appeared battered and broken, on the brink of death or already passed out dead on the ground. Only about 5% of the army had been able to escape the base of the explosion unscathed.

"Master Orochi, shouldn't we do something?" said Psykos with a voice that almost edged on the surface of concern for her fellow associate.

The monster king shook his head. "No. He will receive no support from any one of you. This is the price he pays for electing himself to be the first to battle. Is that understood?"

"Yes, King Orochi!"

"Besides, Black Sperm hasn't displayed the full depths of his strength just yet…"

"I must say you actually managed to impress me." Frieza casually floated back down into the crater formed from his energy attack. "If you were fighting any normal opponent, you would have easily been able to defeat them with your sheer numbers. But I am not a normal opponent." Lord Frieza nonchalantly began walking toward the remaining Black Sperm's. "I am Lord Frieza, your ruler, your jailer, and your imminent death. Do you finally understand that?"

"Damn it!" Black Sperm was out of options. There was absolutely no way he was going to let himself be beaten by this tiny lizard in front of the top members of the Monster Association and King Orochi himself. He didn't have a choice; he was going to have to go all out.

"Let's see how you deal with this!" The Black Sperm army of a few hundred separated into several thousand more sperm copies. "A KAMIKAZI ATTACK WITH TEN THOUSAND OF "ME"!"

"This again? Must you simply go out of your way to pester me like this again?" Frieza sighed. The Black Sperm's sprinted out in all different directions, attempting to catch Frieza off guard and confuse him with the multiple directions they were travelling at. But, quite unexpectedly, Frieza raised both of his hands up into the air. Then, a flurry of red beams came spewing out of Frieza's fingers. Frieza could easily see the copies movements, and every death beam he fired was aimed precisely at a Black Sperm. The army of Black Sperm's began dropping like flies, unable to defend themselves against Frieza's death beams. In less than a minute, all ten thousand Black Sperm's were lying dead on the ground. Well, all but one black sperm, who was standing alone in the center of the crater. "And like that, only one black sperm remains." Frieza lifted his finger toward the sole copy, the red energy growing at the tip of his finger.

"Oh? I think you missed one."

"What?" Black Sperm pointed behind Frieza. Frieza turned around and saw a seemingly limitless number of Black Sperms were merging together.

"You see Frieza, in order for the birth of one life form to be possible, countless others have to be sacrificed. Once two cells merge, they can no longer separate, and within that body, 10 trillion copies of me are struggling to remain." Did Frieza hear him correctly? Ten trillion copies? But then, tears suddenly began filling Black Sperm's eyes, greatly perplexing Frieza.

Black Sperm answered the question in Frieza's mind before he even had a chance to ask. "Right now, my heart is filled with the deepest sadness. 9 trillion, 999 billion, 999 million, 999 thousand, 999 of me are disappearing into nothingness." Black Sperm wiped the tears out of his eyes and forced himself to crack a smile. "On the other hand, my heart is filled with nothing but sheer ecstasy. The 10 trillion cells are merging. They're fighting each other over who gets to be the dominant sperm… For my true self makes its debut once again."

The mob of black sperms began to take shape. A bright golden light burst from the new form, as wind whipped around him. The bright light dimmed, and from it, was a new warrior, standing tall and supremely confident.

"Golden Sperm... is born with a blast!" The combined sperm form was now around 7 feet in height. His entire body shimmered with a shiny gold glow. Unlike the smaller Black Sperm, Golden Sperm was much more muscular, with rock-hard abs, and rippling muscles all over his body that made him appear more human.

"I see. So that little Kamikaze attack was simply a distraction to allow you to form this new body. Very well then. Come at me!"

Golden Sperm snorted. "If you insist." Golden Sperm flew at him at speeds much faster than as an individual black sperm. Frieza's eyes widened in surprise; Golden Sperm's fist collided with the space emperor's face before he had time to react, sending him flying. Golden Sperm then appeared behind Frieza and kicked him hard in the back, propelling him straight into the ground. Before Frieza had a chance to get back up, Golden Sperm came ramming at him with his special combo attack.

Golden Sperm knew this was his only chance; he had caught him off guard, and he wasn't going to waste this opportunistic moment. So, using all the energy he had, Golden Sperm utilized his shape shifting powers to increase the size of his hands, and then prepared his ultimate move.

"Golden Hell Force Strike!"

From Golden Sperm came a lethal volley of blows, sending Frieza even further and further into the ground. "Lets see you walk away from this!" This devastating attack continued on for what seemed like hours as Golden Sperm poured all of his rage into this one single attack. He would make sure the Devil of Frost never walked again.

But eventually, Golden Sperm's lethal attacks began to slow down as his breathing became more labored. He then wiped the sweat off of his forehead once his attacks came to a complete stop.

Meanwhile, the other Black Sperm copy watched his new duplicate with absolute amazement. "Awesome! The 10 trillion merge of me appears again! I'm betting we don't even need Orochi's help."

"Of course we don't. You, the remaining 1 trillion of "me", let me absorb you too."

"Huh? There's no need to combine. You already won; combining doesn't make any sense."

"I didn't say combine, I said absorb. With me around, you lost your reason of existence. Besides, the one trillion cells could boost my power, so stop complaining and get in here."

"Hey asshole!" Black Sperm always hated this drawback; the more cells that merged, the more pompous and arrogant the merged creation became. "Don't get too cocky. You might be more powerful, but we're still all in the same boat."

"Yes, you're both on a boat headed straight to hell."

The two sperm copies looked back and gasped. Frieza had just emerged from the rubble and was dusting himself off with a blank face, as if Golden Sperm's attack wasn't more than a minor spat. "You gained quite a power up with that transformation. But I have a little secret to tell you: I've only been fighting you with around a fifth of my maximum power. I had to power up to around 60% to make sure I wouldn't get any sore muscles."

More gasps. "20%? No, that can't be right!" said Black Sperm, fear laced into his voice as he spoke.

"Oh, but it is. And Golden Sperm, now that you've so generously shown me yours, let me show you mine."

Frieza yelled, turning his eyes to the ground as he did so, and a blue aura surged from Frieza's body. His entire body pulsed with energy, causing the ground to shake just as it had with Nappa. A tornado of energy swirled all around Frieza, and instead of pebbles rising from the ground, large cobbles floated several feet into the air, all around Frieza. The two Sperm clones lost their footing as the small earthquakes shook them around like rag dolls.

Once Frieza stopped yelling, he craned his head up from the ground and stared straight into Golden Sperm's eyes. "Can you feel it? My overwhelming power? It's weight? Its… girth?"

Golden Sperm was speechless. The way he shook the Earth by simply powering up his energy, the way he walked away from his ultimate attack without a scratch on him, the tone of superiority in his voice, that maniacal grin, it rendered him immobile. Frieza's grin widened when he saw Golden Sperm's confident face waver at the sight of Frieza's true power. Wanting to waste no more time, Frieza flew toward Golden Sperm with lightning fast speed and whipped Golden Sperm's face with his tail. Then, gathering all of the energy to his fist, Frieza craned his fist back, than hurled a strong right punch straight into Golden Sperm's stomach. The force from the blow created shockwaves that managed to create yet another large hole in the side of the already large crater behind Golden Sperm.

Golden Sperm let out a painful yelp, falling to his knees as he felt his stomach being churned and pounded into golden butter. That punch felt almost five, maybe eight times harder than any of his previous punches. While there wasn't an actual hole in his stomach, there might as well have been, because both would have felt equally painful. Even with his enhanced power, Golden Sperm couldn't even come close to matching this phenomenal rise in power.

Frieza then set his sights on the remaining Black Sperm, who was actually trembling in fear. He smiled, than flew toward the remaining Black Sperm, grabbing the antenna on top of Black Sperm's head and sending him flying and crashing to where Golden Sperm now lied in defeat.

Frieza laughed at the display of pain being shown before him. "I must say you fought rather admirably. Oh!" Frieza pointed his finger up as an idea popped into his head. "In fact, I was so impressed by your performance that I'm willing to offer you a choice. I will let all of the insolent and degrading remarks you made toward me slide IF… you become my underling."

Vegeta, Zarbon, and the rest of the monsters exchanged looks of shock and disbelief. Golden Sperm and Black Sperm looked at each other with nervous looks, their minds trying to comprehend if Frieza was actually being serious. "Your ability to duplicate into TRILLIONS of copies is remarkable. In fact, you just might be able to replace the entire Frieza Force with your gargantuan numbers. Better yet, all of your copies are equal in power. One hundred of my foot soldier's combined couldn't lift a finger against even one of you. Join me, and you could live like a god. This goes for the rest of you!" Frieza looked up to the rest of the monsters. "If you have abilities as unique as your associate right here, then I will give you this opportunity to become a full fledged member of the Frieza Force and live the life of wealthy, powerful warriors with whatever your heart desires. Or…"

Frieza pointed his two fingers straight at the foreheads of the two sperm copies, and two flashes of red light began to glow at his fingertips. "You can suffer and die, as the last few seconds of your life are spent on your knees, like a little… bitch."

The Black Sperm copies dwelled on the choice given to them. It would be the ultimate humiliation to bow in complete mercy toward their opponent, but if they didn't, their deaths were basically guaranteed. There was no way that Master Orochi would give them any kind of help, and if Golden Sperm couldn't defeat Frieza, he highly doubted that any of the other Dragon level monsters could. But if he did accept Frieza's request, it would be the biggest disgrace of his life. How could they make such an impossible decision?

"I'm still waiting for an answer, and my patience is running thin. What is your choice?" The two Black Sperm copies stood up from their kneeled positions, their heads still bowed towards the ground in shame. The two fighters trembled inside. What they decided at that moment would decide their fate. Betray the Monster Association and give up their free will to this lizard freak? Or honor the Monster Association and almost certainly die right then and their? What would it be?

At that moment, Black Sperm's primal instinct to survive kicked in, forcing any previous thoughts of loyalty and honor out of his mind. Black Sperm knelt to the ground, bowed his head, and placed his hand over his heart. "I pledge myself to you, Lord Frieza."

"A very wise choice, my tiny black friend. Will your shiny clone be joining you, or is he too busy contemplating about committing spermicide?" Frieza let out a soft chuckle. "I hope you don't mind me using the same joke twice, but I simply couldn't help myself."

A sweat drop fell down Black Sperm's face. "Not at all…" Black Sperm turned his attention toward Golden Sperm. "Dude, you can't win. Just stop being such a hothead and join the winning side."

Golden Sperm peered back up to his fellow monsters and Orochi to see what was their reaction to this sudden betrayal. Master Orochi's face was still stoic and neutral, but he could tell the unmitigated fury Master Orochi was feeling just by looking at him. His hands were balled into fists, and his lips were pursed. He turned back to Frieza, whose fingertip was glowing an even brighter crimson red.

"Choose."

Golden Sperm covered his eyes with his hands. He couldn't believe he was actually going to do this, but he trudged over to Black Sperm's side and fell to his knees. "You win. You are my master now, Lord Frieza." Gasps spread like wildfire through the group of monsters, including Vegeta and Zarbon.

When Frieza saw this defeated sign of surrender, the space emperor cackled in delight. He then began clapping, practically applauding the two sperm-looking monsters for their well-thought decision to bow to his rule. "Bravo! You have just made the smartest decision of your lives! Would any of you up there like to join in these two's footsteps and become fully fledged members of the Frieza Force?"

The monsters remained silent. There was no way that any of them would be stupid enough to betray the Monster King himself…

Well, apparently there was. For Homeless Emperor had slid down into the deep crevice to join Lord Frieza. Homeless Emperor knew this was what he had to do. This was what it had all been leading up to. This Devil of Frost was the only one who could defeat the only thing that stood between the restoration of Mother Earth and humanity's extinction. God himself foresaw this, and he was his most powerful disciple. It would be disgraceful not to join Lord Frieza's empire.

Frieza hummed in interest. "Oh? Another one of you who is smart enough to realize submission will grant you a lifetime of opulence and power?"

"I merely desire to become a part of something greater, and you are the only one who can restore the beauty of this once serene planet."

"Ok… Well, as long as you are strong, you are more than welcome to join my grandiose empire."

The monsters couldn't believe this. One by one, all of the most powerful executive members of the Monster Association were being promoted, betraying the Monster Association without batting an eye. The remaining monsters loyal to the Monster Association could only imagine how enraged Orochi was feeling. All of them slowly looked to see just how mad Orochi was feeling, and what they saw was even worse than what they thought. Orochi's stoic mask was now gone. His entire body was trembling with rage, and his eyes were now razor sharp daggers. None of the monsters had ever seen Orochi this angry. Hell, none of them had ever seen Orochi with this much emotion, or any emotion, at all. All the monsters had only one question in their minds at that moment: what was Master Orochi's going to do?

Their question was answered. Orochi vanished in an instant. Frieza didn't have any time to register the titanic fist that hit in square in the chest. Frieza was blown up hundreds of feet into the air. The Monster King had had enough of this malarchy. It was time he asserted his dominance as the king of this world once and for all. And the first step to this was: subject insubordination.

The three dragon level monsters were speechless.

"Master Orochi..."

All three monsters were met with a violently forceful right backhand that sent all three of them straight into the ground. The force of that single strike was enough to fracture their bodies beyond repair; even Golden Sperm was not able to survive the strike. Orochi turned his attention back to Frieza, who had just managed to stop himself in midair before landing softly on the ground. "You had it easy fighting Black Sperm, but I am on a completely different level than this insignificant worm. Now you will have the privilege of dying at the hands of Orochi, the Monster King himself! No tricks, no interventions, simply hand-to-hand combat."

Frieza scrunched his face. He wouldn't dare show it, but Frieza actually felt that.

When he saw Orochi, he immediately distinguished him as the dominant leader of the group of monsters, with his large stature and rather frightening, intimidating appearance. But now, having felt the full force of his power, it became abundantly clear to him that this "Monster King" was the real deal. He would have to be on guard and make sure he didn't take another one of those surprise attacks full-on, or else he would be in some serious trouble.

"Very well. I will give you the courtesy of fighting you at the zenith of my power." A blue aura enveloped Frieza once again, and the Devil of Frost took a fighting pose.

While this intense standstill was happening, Fuhrer Ugly got up on his toes and whispered into Gouketsu's ear, "Do you think Master Orochi will be able to beat Frieza?"

Gouketsu simply huffed. "The tiny lizard might have been able to overpower Golden Sperm, but I have no doubt in my mind that Orochi will stand victorious. No being in the world can surpass him. Even with my martial arts prowess and my enhanced strength as a monster, I couldn't lift a finger to Orochi. You just watch. Frieza has no idea what he's in for."

* * *

The two leaders were as still as stone. But then, both disappeared from the spectators line of sight. The only visible sign that any fight was actually happening was the short and immensely powerful bursts of air pressure and wind that whipped their faces.

"Amazing..." said Gouketsu. "They're moving at speeds our eyes can't keep up with. Even as dragon level monsters, we're nothing compared to beings like these..."

Back in the ongoing battle, Orochi and Frieza were exchanging powerful blows. The short and powerful bursts of air pressure were actually the two fighter's fists colliding with each other. But what the spectators didn't know was that of the two of them, Frieza was the one who was taking more damage, as every punch that collided between them sent jolts of pain through his fists. Frieza then fired a barrage of death beams at Orochi, but to his annoyance, Orochi managed to deflect them all with no visible signs of pain. Orochi then leapt in front of Frieza, and swiped at Frieza using his claws. Frieza let out a yelp of pain as he felt those sword-sized claws slashing through his chest. Huge claw shaped marks then scarred the Earth from the power behind Orochi's attack. Orochi then followed it up with a right knee, pummeling Frieza into the ground once more.

Gouketsu and the rest of the monsters smiled. Orochi had this fight in the bag.

Frieza shook his head. He touched his wounds lightly, and winced when he felt the open flesh that had carved through his chest. The Space Emperor looked at the Monster King, who was smiling arrogantly at his opponent. Frieza's cold blood began to boil.

"Why YOU!"

"Lord Frieza!" Zarbon flew to his masters aid, but just before he could, a hand grasped his shoulder, stopping him in his tracks. That hand belonged to Vegeta, of all people.

"Let go of me, you mongrel!"

"Don't be a fool! You know full well that thing is completely out of your league!"

"But-"

"But nothing! If Frieza can't win, then we're dead. And if Frieza does win, then we get to live. It's that simple." He'd like nothing more than to watch Frieza gasp his last breath, but he knew his friendly neighborhood monsters probably wouldn't be so keen to let him join their club. Not like he wanted to anyway. At this point, all they could do was watch...

"Hah hah hah..." Orochi's deep and intimidating laugh only served to enrage Frieza even more. "I told you. Even the mighty "Devil of Frost" cannot fathom my incomparable power.

"You see, my tiny friend, there is a simple, primordial rule that has reigned true since life first formed on this planet and extends to every corner of the universe: only the strong shall rule." Orochi slowly began walking to Frieza with a calm mannerism in his movements.

"Wealth, appearances, intelligence, street smarts, business, those are all useless, merely conveniences at best, in the face of raw, overwhelming power. A tyrant without any power of his own can rule with an iron fist. He can impose the most bias, most racist, most prejudiced rules, and have anyone who doesn't think like him imprisoned and sentenced to a lifetime of torture, to keep his citizens paralyzed in fear. But one day, there will be a lone rebel, a sole person who with words alone can stir the masses to rise up, infuse them with hope, the only emotion stronger than fear, to rebel against the draconian rule that imprisons them, and that tyrant will have no way of keep his empire stable for long. For without his castle, without his armies, without his followers, he is simply a tiny, pathetically weak man, living in his own fantasy world of control and confidence, when in reality, he controls nothing.

"You must understand this perfectly, no?"

"Oh, of course. How do you think I became the Emperor of the Universe?"

"I was told that a warrior with jet black hair and the power to defeat hundreds of your foot soldiers attempted to rebel against your rule, and you destroyed him along with his entire planet?"

Frieza gasped. "How do you know that?" Only he, Zarbon, and Dodoria had been there to see that day, and only they, along with what remained of the Saiyan race, knew of the legend that could have come close to coming true: the Legendary Super Saiyan. It, along with two other ancient beings his father had warned him to never cross paths with: Majin Buu and Beerus the Destroyer, were the only things that Frieza had ever feared, the only beings that could surpass him in power. No living soul could ever know of this fear, and if this monster somehow knew, that only gave him more reason to eliminate him.

"One of my underlings has the power of clairvoyance. She saw that moment in a vision."

"Ahhhh..." This caught Frieza's attention, and slightly calmed him down. If they only saw the moment, it was highly unlikely that they knew why he had really destroyed Planet Vegeta. And besides, having the power of clairvoyance would be an amazing gift to wield. He thought that dream was dead when Planet Kanassas and its inhabitants were killed, but apparently there was still another chance to attain this ability.

"That was 25 years ago. A low-class saiyan named Bardock caught wind of my plans and attempted to silence me, like the foolhardy monkey he was. So I destroyed him, along with the entire planet."

"I can see now why you're the Emperor of this Universe. It's obvious now. If you find a race who doesn't want to live under your empire, you can just destroy their planet in a fiery ball of death, which will spread fear and hopelessness throughout the universe, only adding strength to your army and reputation. And if your soldiers are even a 10th as powerful as you-

"Which they are."

"Then no matter how many citizens rise up, they'll all be beaten and slaughtered into submission, making them truly understand the frugality of their situation. In that sense, I envy you. And that's just one of the many reasons why I can't let you leave here alive.

"I am about to restore the world to how it once was: ruled by the strong and strong alone. I, and I alone, will lead this world and restore this planet to its natural order, its only order, and I can't have you in my way. Now prepare to meet your maker."

Frieza once again resumed a fighting stance. Orochi had been a fool for monologuing; it had given Frieza ample time to think and plan out his next move.

Frieza knew that Orochi's gigantic claws and larger body gave him an advantage over Frieza and allowed him to possess more force in his attacks, so engaging in close quarters combat was going to end badly for him. In that case, Frieza had to think of the things HE had that Orochi didn't. For one, he could fly and use energy attacks that could be charged if given enough time. He thought even deeper, and realized that perhaps having a larger body wasn't such a huge advantage. It made his vital organs much more vulnerable for attack, it made it much harder for him to properly target Frieza if he was constantly moving, and it decreased his speed to an extent. Frieza smiled to himself. Perhaps things could work out in his favor after all...

Frieza screamed, letting his aura flicker to life. He lunged for Orochi, his claws primed for battle. Orochi sprinted to Frieza, stretching his hand back to meet Frieza's attack head-on.

"DIE!"

But suddenly, Frieza jumped up into the air in a diagonal direction, then propelled himself with his energy. Orochi attempted to grab Frieza midair, but missed, simply grabbed the air instead. Frieza then landed a firm fight kick on Orochi's jaw. Orochi grabbed his jaw in pain, and spit a tooth out of his mouth. "Is that the best you can do?"

Frieza scoffed. "Hardly. I'm just getting started."

Orochi threw his fist at Frieza. Frieza jumped up, using Orochi's fist to propel himself upward, then fired a giant red energy wave just inches away from Orochi's face, which completely engulfed Orochi's head. Luckily, the energy blast had missed the spectating monsters and made its very long journey into the depths of space.

"Ahhh!" Orochi felt slightly nauseous and disoriented, feeling a dizzy spell cast over him. He hadn't been prepared for a point blank blast like that. Frieza continued his attack, opting not to be a gentleman and wait for his opponent to recover from the blast. Frieza elbowed Orochi in the stomach, eliciting a grunt of pain from Orochi. Orochi swung his fist at Frieza with adrenaline and rage, but only succeeded in punching himself in the gut. Now, Orochi's right hand was covering his eyes from the blast, and his left hand was clutching his gut.

"Perfect. Now's my chance to land the finishing blow." Frieza cupped his hands together, channeling all of the energy from his body into his hands.

Orochi, in pain and unable to see anything, called out for his minions. "Gouketsu! Psykos! All of you! Get down here at once!"

The monsters were a little slow to react because it took them a second to realize that Master Orochi was serious. Orochi, the most powerful monster on this planet, was actually calling out for help. "Oh... Yes, of course!"

All of the monsters leapt down to their masters side. As they were leaping down, Fuhrer Ugly and Nyan began transforming, growing in size, their teeth and claws elongating, and their muscles pumping up as they went into their maximum state of power.

"You're powerful, but let's see how you handle all of us at once!" shouted Gouketsu.

But it was too late for the monsters.

"TAKE COVER!" shouted Zarbon, for he knew what was about to come.

"Nova Crusher!"

The surge of energy was enormous. All of the monsters were caught in the blast; they were too close to dodge, too close to put up any psychic barrier for protection. All they could do was watch their lives flash before their very eyes.

* * *

"How close are we to the alien ship?"

The S-Class heroes were running at a full sprint. Well, all of them except Tornado, who was flying up in the air, extremely irritated because she was forced to slow down for the rest of the slow poke S-class heroes. All of the heroes had been perplexed when King had asked to hitch a ride on Darkshine's back. King reasoned that it was so he would save his energy for the fight against the aliens, and the heroes didn't object once they heard his engine beating louder than ever.

"According to Sitch, the ship is about 30 miles north of us," replied Bang.

"Finally!" Metal Bat swung his bat at a tree, completely tearing it from its roots. "Whatever this "Devil of Frost" thing is, it better be fucking worth it! I had to miss my sisters-"

"God, will you knock it off already?!" Tatsumaki shouted up from the sky. "You've said the same thing 47 times already! WE GET IT!"

"Whatever!" Metal Bat grunted, but his face softened when he thought of her little sister. "I hope she's ok. I left her all alone..."

"Don't worry, Metal Bat." Bomb, who couldn't help but overhear Metal Bat's tone of concern for his little sister, ran over to Metal Bat's side to give him some comfort. He was just a child, after all. "I know what it feels like to care for a younger sibling. I can't tell you how many times I-"

"EVERYONE HIT THE DECKS!" screamed Tatsumaki. "SOMETHING HUGE IS COMING!"

At first, none of the heroes knew what the hell she was talking about. But then, the heroes heard something which sounded like an explosion, and it was getting closer and closer by the second.

"OH SHIT!"

The heroes barely had enough time to dodge a huge blast of red energy that was ripping through the land like it was tossing up loose sand. The blast of red energy then exploded, sending all of the S-class heroes flying into the air.

It took around a minute for all of the heroes to recuperate from the blast that could have taken their lives.

"Is everyone alright? Is anyone missing?" asked Bang.

Bang began counting all of the heroes to see who was still with them, and thankfully, everyone had managed to avoid the blast.

"At least that proves this frost guy isn't a complete pushover," said Metal Bat.

"What kind of monster could have created a blast so powerful?" said Puri-Puri-Prisoner.

"The only way we're going to find that out is if we follow that." Sweet Mask pointed to the newly formed canyon that was spanning for miles.

"Then let's do this! I wanna get these babies pumpin!" shouted Superalloy Darkshine.

"I agree. I've had enough suspense." Flashy Flash unsheathed his katana. "It's time we finally know what we're really up against."

* * *

Dust clouds were swirling around in the huge crater. Frieza coughed, his eyes watering as well from all the dust accumulated in the crater.

"Lord Frieza! Are you alright?!"

"I'm fine, Zarbon. What about the midget men? Did they get caught in the crossfire?"

Frieza looked around, and saw all three of the newly recruited Frieza Force members lying on their backs on the side of the crater, in a coughing fit like Frieza.

Vegeta put his hand over his eye. There was no chance in hell Vegeta could ever pose a threat to this monster. Hell, it was hard to believe anything could stand up to this abhorrent mutant. Which meant he would be stuck being Frieza's plaything for the rest of his life. The thought made him want to yank out all of his hair while screaming until his lungs gave out.

"I probably overdid it a tad there. Let's see how our friends fared against that display of my power."

Frieza cut an invisible ki wave through the air to clear all of the dust out of the crater. Frieza's eyes slightly widened when he saw just exactly how bad the monsters were damaged. All of them were lying on the ground in what appeared to be an unconscious state. Some of the monsters had lost their limbs, their faces burned, and their bodies laying lifeless on the ground. Frieza counted at least three of the monsters that weren't even there: the one with no eyes and big teeth, the particularly ugly monster, the giant blob of water, and the anthropomorphic cat, meaning they must have been completely vaporized by the blast. The female esper and Orochi were the only ones who managed to keep all of their body parts intact.

Frieza walked over to the fallen Monster King, with a skip in his steps. Orochi's head gradually craned itself up, nominally surprising Frieza. "You put up quite a fight. I can see why you call yourself the Monster King. But in the end, you simply couldn't match my otherworldly strength. In fact, now that I mention my strength, I have something to tell you before you die."

Frieza leaned down and whispered into Orochi's right ear. Once Frieza leaned back up, Orochi's entire body shook with fear, and his face whimpered in terror. "That's not possible. You're telling me you weren't-"

"Yes, you weren't fighting me with even half a percent of my true power. I was merely testing myself to see if I could beat you at my current power, and it turns out, I was right. With that in mind, I find there is no more entertainment to be found here."

Frieza stretched his arm out to the Monster King. "Feel free to pray to your god to save you, but spoiler alert-"

Frieza flexed his finger and fired his death beam, which went straight through the Monster King's skull and his entire body.

"I wasn't listening."

Frieza wiped the sweat off of his forehead. "Phew. Now that that's finally over with, what say we find Dodoria and the other two, and we resume our search for-"

One of the foot soldiers shouted at the top of his lungs from the ship, interrupting Frieza. "Lord Frieza! The Ginyu Force is about to arrive!"

Frieza was utterly baffled at this unexpected update. "What?! How come you didn't tell me sooner?!"

The foot soldier stammered before he could find the right words that wouldn't get him killed. "You were in the middle of a very important battle, so I didn't want to interrupt you and take your concentration away from the battle."

Frieza stared coldly for a few seconds, but then he dismissed his anger. "Fair enough..." Vegeta and Zarbon heard a loud sigh of relief from the random foot soldier. "Ah yes, I can see their space pods coming into view."

Vegeta and Zarbon looked up, and sure enough, five space pods were flying in, slowing down as the got closer and closer to Frieza's ship. Zarbon and Vegeta still couldn't believe that the Ginyu Force themselves were coming to this planet. Each member possessed a unique skill set that was extremely deadly to those who ever had the terror of fighting them firsthand.

The Pods crashed onto the ground with tremendous force and vibrations shaking the ground around them. Within a moments notice, all 5 fronts of the Ginyu Pods sprung open.

"Lord Frieza, some more earthlings have arrived!"

Frieza groaned. "Again? Who now?"

Frieza floated up from the crater, and laid his eyes upon around a dozen humanoid fighters, who looked at him with deadly stares and faces that said they were looking for a fight.

The newcomers spoke in exact unison: "So, what did we miss?"

* * *

 _Boom! Not even Orochi could stand up to Frieza! I wrote most of this chapter while on a plane to Spain, and got serious jet lag. But anyway, it's happening! Some S-class heroes vs. Space Pirate action!_

 _To respond_ _to some of the reviews: Neonazo, Golden Sperm wasn't a reference to Golden Frieza, that was literally his transformation in the webcomic. Speedyquader, the reason why I don't think Golden Sperms power is additive is because all his cells were in their neutral or inactive state, and as a result, I don't believe they fully activated their true power. Also, a lot of energy was spent on combining the cells themselves, and each cell was fighting to be the dominant one of the group. And to the guest, the Bulma equivalent was the doctors and Child Emperor. They aren't chicks, but I don't really care. And erdrick, you'll just have to wait and see..._

 _And to the guests who say these power levels are BS because none of them have shown planetary feats, the only reason why fighters in dbz universe can perform planetary feats is because the channel their ki. But in terms of solely hand-to-hand combat, all of the OPM and DBZ fighters have shown around the same level of strength; none of the dbz characters in the Frieza saga were able to break entire mountain ranges with their fists. If a lot of these monsters could channel energy like in dbz, they could blow up planets too. But you got the 150th review of my story, so congratulations! Pat yourself on the back._

 _Stay tuned for more on the next chapter of The Space Emperor's Besiege!_


	16. Round One: Bear With Me

_Chapter 16 is up! Sorry for the nearly month long wait guys, but I moved from Wisconsin to Tennessee, and I've had alot of days on vacation, so it's been hard to be consistent. But anyway, its finally here! Some S-class vs Space Pirate action!_

* * *

The Ginyu Force levitated from the craters, each of them smiling with smiles that said they were enjoying themselves. All of the Ginyus then gently placed their feet in front of Frieza's ship to face Frieza and the warriors who were standing not too far away from Frieza.

All of a sudden, they did something none of the S-class heroes had ever seen from any monsters before; one by one, they started taking these unusual poses, chanting their names as they did so.

"I am Recoome!"

"I am Burter!"

"The name's Jeice!"

"Guldo!"

"Captain Ginyu!"

"5! 4! 3! 2! 1! WE ARE THE GINYU FORCE!"

All 5 warriors were frozen in their signature opening poses, letting the awe-struck silence sink in. That awe-struck silence was broken by the sound of clapping. No, not from Frieza, but Puri-Puri-Prisoner.

"BRAVO! FINALLY, A GROUP OF MONSTERS THAT KNOW HOW TO MAKE A PROPER ENTRANCE!"

Puri-Puri-Prisoner was given a hard swing in the back by Metal Bat's bat. He let out a yelp of pain, then looked at Metal Bat with a fiery face of anger. "What'd you do that for?"

"DUDE, you can't applaud the bad guys! And anyway, those guys look like a bunch of homos." A few chuckles were let out from the male S-class heroes, while Puri-Puri-Prisoner only became more infuriated.

Metal Bat continued to rant on.

"Besides, this whole things looks like a scam! You're telling me we hauled our asses all the way out here to fight these scrawny chicken asses?! That tiny lizard guy looks like he couldn't even scratch my bat!"

"How dare you insult the mighty Lord Frieza!" shouted Captain Ginyu. "Who exactly do you think you are?!"

"Why don't you come down here and let me tell you?!"

Bang smacked Metal Bat hard in the back of the head. "Ow! What'd you do that for?!"

"Don't be a fool! You should know an opponents power has nothing to do with their outward appearance!

Metal Bat gave Bang a look that said, 'What the fuck are you talking about?'

"Uhhh, it kinda does. The bigger they are, the more heroes they can crush; that's how I've seen it."

"I'm gonna go with the twig master on this one." Tornado decided to chime in on their conversation. "I was expecting something a lot bigger than this." Some of the other heroes nodded in agreement.

Bang and Bomb shook their heads. They didn't want to cause any alarm, but that "lizard guy" was radiating nothing but pure evil, enough to make them both sick to their stomachs. His aura wasn't only malicious, it was powerful, like unbelievably powerful. And the five newcomers weren't to be scoffed at either. Not like it would mean anything to the other S-class heroes. All of them were so caught up in their own egos, their words of caution would fly over their heads.

"Forget about them for a moment, Ginyu," said Frieza. "You had an impressive entrance there."

The S-class heroes were completely forgotten by the captain. "Thank you, sir. It's an honor to be by your side once again." Ginyu's smile faltered when he saw the large claw marks across Frieza's chest. "My Lord! Your chest! Are you alright?!"

"Oh, I'm fine, Captain. I just finished a rather arduous battle, and I'm afraid I simply wasn't able to leave it unscathed."

Ginyu calmed down after hearing this. "Very well. Jeice, if you would..."

"Of course, Captain." Jeice walked to the edge of Frieza's ship and opened a green case he had been carrying. "Here ya go, Lord Frieza. The new and improved scouters ya wanted."

"Marvelous."

Jeice nodded and walked back to his comrades. "So, Lord Frieza, is this all you needed, or is there anything else we could assist you with?" said Captain Ginyu.

"As a matter of fact..." Frieza turned his hover chair around to face the heroes who were watching them. He then levitated downwards in his chair to be at eye level with the new group of heroes. The Ginyu Force quickly flew down to join him. Feeling it was necessary, Zarbon and Vegeta traveled down as well.

"And just who might you be? I'm assuming you haven't all come down here to-"

"Wait, hold up a second. Who's the handsome one there?" Zarbon and Sweet Mask spoke identically, pointing at each other as they noticed one another. "He's got style."

Everyone stared at each other to see if this was actually happening. "Zarbon, keep your thoughts to yourself, if you would. You're putting thoughts in my head..." Frieza shuddered, along with everyone else. Zarbon and Sweet Mask looked at each other, then just shrugged their shoulders like they didn't know what was going on, and they didn't care.

Tatsumaki was the first to break the silence. "ANYWAY, we heard this big prophecy about a Devil of Frost coming to Earth, and we're here to kick your-"

"I'VE FOUND THE JACKPOT! THIS IS TOO GOOD TO BE TRUE!" A new voice popped up out of nowhere, and it was coming from right behind the S-class heroes. Everyone turned around, and what they saw filled the air with gasps, especially from Bang and Bomb. For the newcomer was none other than Garou, the Hero Hunter himself.

Garou had been searching through A-City, searching for any good competition to test his abilities like always, when he saw several heroes from the Hero Association leave the building at once. At first, he couldn't tell which heroes these were, but when he managed to get in closer, Garou was able to identify Superalloys Darkshine, with King himself riding on his back. He didn't know for sure whether or not his eyes were deceiving him or not, but he figured he had nothing to lose. It had taken quite some effort to keep up with the heroes, and he thought he hadn't lost them, until he saw a monumentally sized canyon or rock formation that carved through the land. He went with his instincts and followed this canyon, and sure enough, it led to the S-class heroes.

"Garou!"

Garou winced in fear when he heard that voice. He searched through the horde of S-class heroes, and sure enough, the old fart was standing there alongside the rest of the heroes. He noticed another rather old man standing beside the old fart, and gasped. That was Bomb, Bang's older brother and the only one Garou knew that could best the old fart in a fight. With his Whirlwind Cutting Iron Fist, he was truly a god in the martial arts world. What was he doing here? He wasn't a hero, so why was he mixed up with the rest of these S-class heroes?

He looked up and saw another large group of warriors with identical uniforms but each completely different in nearly all aspects of appearance. But what Garou found confounding was the one in the center, the one in the floating chair who he presumed to be the leader was just a tiny, scaly lizard. "What's going on? If 10 of the most powerful members of the Hero Association and quite possibly this entire planet are all here in one place, this has to be quite the threat. Are you the one that's brought all these guys down here?" Garou pointed his finger at Frieza, his slouched posture and snarky face signifying a condescending attitude in his behavior.

The Space Emperor pinched the bridge of his nose. After those two consecutive fights, he was rather exhausted, both physically and mentally, and he was in no mood to deal with another one of these cocky attitudes again.

"Captain, when was the last time you and your team had a bracing fight?"

"Well, to tell you the truth, it has been quite some time since we've had any decent competition."

"I see. I've made a decision. Captain Ginyu, your team will do battle with these newcomers while I regain my strength with some red wine and bread."

"Hell no!" Garou walked to the edge of the crater with anger in his eyes. "Exactly who the fuck are you?"

Superalloy Darkshine walked up to the edge of the crater alongside Garou. "This is the demon of frost that the entire Hero Association has been preparing to fight all these weeks."

Garou looked up to the hero with disbelief. "Are you serious? This is the god-level threat meant to destroy humanity? It's really-"

"Yes, it's underwhelming. But don't get comfortable. When I'm done wiping the floor with him, I'm coming for you next."

Garou smiled maliciously. "I wouldn't have it any other way." Garou lifted his head up to Frieza. "But what makes you think we're gonna just play along with these sadistic games?!" shouted Garou.

Frieza sighed and closed his eyes. While keeping his eyes closed, he pointed his finger up into the sky, forming a small fireball at his fingertip. It shot straight up into the sky, where it then exploded, creating a fiery inferno of flames and death which spanned for miles in all directions, and left all of the heroes speechless.

"And that was just me messing around. So while I go relax, you just sit and stay, and maybe, if I feel like it, I'll indulge your little fantasy of fighting me. Does that sound good to you?" No objections were made, the heroes still stunned at his ridiculous power.

"Good. Well, have fun." And like that, the Devil of Frost was off to the sidelines, while the main event was about to begin. Superalloy Darkshine walked back to the heroes, who were for the most part looking conflicted and confused with everything coming at them.

"Are we really gonna let this happen?" said Flashy Flash.

"Let's just humor them and do what they say for now," replied Bomb. "He's not going anywhere, and we have more than enough manpower to eliminate him once we've dealt with these clowns. And as for you, Garou." Bang and Bomb walked together to face Garou, who had his arms crossed and was scowling at the two martial artists, pure hatred radiating off him as they continued to get closer to him.

"Are you going to behave yourself? Or are we going to have to discipline you?"

Garou clenched his fists at Bomb's threat. "I'll play along. For now. But my only condition is that I face that frost devil. He might be able to do his little light shows, but you both know I have my fighting abilities to back me up. Are those acceptable terms for you?"

The brothers looked at each other. "Very well. But know that we'll be watching you. If you make even a single slip-up, you're finished."

Garou smirked. "But of course." Giving his former disciple one final stern look, he and his brother left Garou without another word.

Garou could barely contain his laughter. This couldn't get any better. He wasn't quite sure exactly how these games were going to go, but he was pretty sure it was divided up into rounds, and each round was for a separate S-class hero. With each of these battles, he'd be able to observe each of these hero's fighting styles first-hand and that of these alien freaks. He had no idea where they came from or what kind of abilities they had, but each of them had the ability to fly, so that counted as something. Only time could tell whether of not there was more to them that met the eye.

The Ginyu Force spoke up. "So, which one'a you buggers wants to tangle with us first, ay-"

"Jeice; I think I'd like to be the first contender in this contest of yours." Everyone turned to see Zarbon with his arms crossed, a smirk on his face, and his eyes dead set on Sweet Mask. "I feel like such a handsome fighter as this needs to be handled by me alone, just to make sure there aren't any serious bruises. Is that alright with you, Captain?"

"Uhhhh..." The Captain had no response. So instead, he turned to Lord Frieza for approval. "Lord Frieza, is it alright if Zarbon here gets to be the first contender?"

Frieza already had a platter of red wine and cheese when he heard Ginyu's question. "I see it as only fitting, since Zarbon didn't get any serious action when those monsters came. Let it be so."

"Yes, Lord Frieza!" Ginyu's turned back to Zarbon. "Have at it."

"Thank you, Captain." Zarbon shifted to face Frieza and bowed. "Thank you, Lord Frieza!"

Zarbon's attention was once again directed at Sweet Mask, who was looking just as pleased about this arrangement as Zarbon was.

"Now then, what should we do about the battle arena..." said Captain Ginyu. Tornado groaned and levitated up into the air.

"Fine! I'll build the stupid arena for you idiots! But once it's my turn to go, I'm not gonna hold back anything!"

The Ginyu Force snickered at the surprisingly rude attitude coming from this tiny girl.

"Oh yea? Well, what's a little girl gonna... gonna..." Recoome, no everyone, had their words caught in their throat when they saw a humongous chunk of rock being ripped apart from the ground a couple hundred meters away, which then slammed into the crater, covering the hole completely. Using her psychic wave attack, she flattened out the boulder, forming a completely flat and smooth surface in the process. In seconds, Tornado lifted up another nearby boulder, and cut up the rock into hundreds of perfectly symmetrical squares. The squares were then cut up into fourths, where they then flew and formed a giant flat surface that shimmied with a marble white hue. Finally, for the finishing touches, up from the ground came four large stone pillars. Tornado quickly carved up the pillars, crafting four marble pillars with four round balls at the top. With a thrust of her hands, these pillars were slammed down into the four corners of the arena.

"And with that, I'm done." Tornado floated down to the rest of the heroes, leaving the band of space pirates in shock and awe.

"Captain, did she just..."

"Yes, she did."

Frieza was left in awe along with the rest of his subordinates. One thing was certain: she wasn't one to be easily trifled with. "I wonder how the Ginyu's will handle her..."

"Well? Are you getting on or what?" Tatsumaki was addressing both Zarbon and Sweet Mask, staring at them as if what she had done had been no big deal. Sweet Mask was the first to snap himself out of his awe-stricken state and stepped onto the arena. It took Zarbon a little more time, but he too soon pushed himself onto the arena.

Both fighters walked with a calm stride, as if they were simply strolling through the park on a bright and sunny day. The two handsome fighters finally came to a stop when they were just a few feet away from each other.

"I didn't catch your name," said Zarbon.

"Call me Sweet Mask," replied the A-class hero. "And you're Zarbon. Did I catch that right?"

"Perfectly. I must say, you are simply dazzling. I usually don't ask questions like these to my enemies or even talk at all, but you are a very rare exception. You obviously know how important beauty is."

Sweet Mask nodded. "In order to be a true hero for the people, one must be both strong and beautiful. Which is why I deeply regret spilling your blood today." Sweet Mask took a fighting stance. "Are you sure you won't consider joining the Hero Association? I'd personally vouch for your promotion to S-class."

Zarbon shook his head. "I can't do that. Could you find it in your heart to quit the life of a hero and join the Frieza Force? If your strong, Frieza will give you whatever you please, and you're looked at like a king by all of your subordinates."

"I couldn't possibly turn to the dark side, no matter how tempting the rewards are on the other side."

"Oh well. It was worth a try." Like Sweet Mask, Zarbon took a fighting pose, a hint of disappointment apparent in the two handsome fighter's eyes.

"Alright here are the rules! Whoever knocks their opponent out of the ring or knocks them out in general wins! No weapons, because where's the fun in that?And that's basically it..."

Frieza moved his hand up to the air, then swung it down. "Let the preliminary round begin!"

* * *

"This isn't good."

"We're totally fucked. No human can fight that thing."

In the very disastrous and war-torn S-class city, a B-class hero and C-class hero, Mohican and Pineapple, were fighting a battle they could not win. Hell, it wasn't even a battle; they were just being toyed with.

They'd heard word that Naranki, a very important and high ranking executive of the Hero Association who contributed 7% of the operation of the association, and his son were attacked by a centipede monster. Iaian, Okamaitachi, and Bushidrill were assigned to protect Naranki, and things were going swimmingly for them until Senior Centipede and Raffleseidon, two demon level monsters, came out of nowhere. And then, to top it all off, the infamous Elder Centipede, a gargantuan dragon level threat, had arrived. By the time these two lower class heroes made it on the scene, all three of Atomic Samurai's disciples were barely standing. From what the two heroes saw, they'd managed to take out the smallest centipede and Raffleseidon. But it was simply too much for them. Within seconds of their arrival, the swordsmen had passed out, barely having enough time to tell these two newcomer heroes what had just happened.

"So, two little humans have arrived to save these pitiful souls? How pathetic," said Senior Centipede.

"Let us not waste time on such lowly heroes," said Elder Centipede. "I will devour them, then we will take these two unconscious hostages to the headquar-" A painful sensation suddenly sparked up in Elder Centipede's tail. That painful sensation quickly started to shoot up through his entire body. It was as if lava was pouring down his tail and quickly flowing down the rest of his body. The centipede writhed and screamed in complete pain; he had never felt anything so torturous as what he was experiencing at that moment. The giant centipede shook himself rigorously, destroying all of the buildings around him in the process, in a desperate attempt to make the pain somehow go away, but nothing was working.

Senior Centipede looked up at his superior with worry. "Elder Centipede, what's going on?!"

"Something's happening to me! My insides are being torn apart! What's happening to me-" Elder Centipede's sentence was cut short; bursting from Elder Centipede's head was Saitama, the newly promoted S-class hero himself, looking frazzled and in a rush. Spinal fluid, brain matter, and blood spilled all over the heroes, the centipede, and the surrounding buildings that were already left in ruins were now soaked in these inner organs and fluids.

Senior Centipede's legs were limp and motionless. "It's him... It can't be..." He remembered that bald head; that was the hero swindler. He was only in B-class; alot of the monsters found it fishy that he'd been moved up to S-class, and refused to believe in his power. How was this possible? "Why you... you BASTARD! I WILL AVENGE MY ELDER! NOW PREPARE YOURSELF FOR MY ULTIMATE-" Not having the time to wait for these boring monologues, Saitama jumped down from Elder Centipede's head, spun his entire body midair, and split Senior Centipede's entire body in half. The hero burst out of the end of Senior Centipede's tail, and shook himself off like a wet dog after a bath. Standing just a few feet away from Saitama, Pineapple and Mohican were struggling to come to grips with what they had just seen happen.

"You just took out those two centipedes like nothing..."

"What the h is going on..." The two heroes approached Saitama, their faces ghostly pale and their mouths dry as sandpaper. "Uh, thanks for saving our asses there..." said Pineapple.

"Yea, we really owe you on-" Before they had the chance to finish giving him their thanks, a gust of wind blew the two heroes away; Saitama didn't even stay to hear the thanks from them. He didn't stay to get thanks for the 40 or 50 other monsters he'd punched to kingdom come, and this one was no exception. The bald hero just about had it with all of the monsters he'd seen on the streets. He was going to miss the biggest fight of his life just because he was in the middle of a monster traffic jam.

"Oh great. And there's another one..." Coming up in Saitama's view was a flying bird, a huge rhino with a wrestler gi, and this weird sludgy jellyfish, all standing right in front of Saitama's path.

The rhino was the first to speak. "You're not going anywhere, Caped Baldy! You may have been moved up to S-class, but I'm calling you out! Now, you're gonna see the culmination of all my years of training to crush all of the-" Rhino Wrestler's entire body was turned into ground meat, leaving only his legs intact.

"I'M NOT IN THE MOOD FOR MORE MONOLOGUES, SO CYA!" shouted Saitama as he ran away from the terrified associates who just witnessed Rhino Wrestler's demise.

"Gragghh!" Saitama combed his hands through his non existent hair; this was taking way too long. If he didn't move this along, he wasn't going to make it on time, LIKE ALWAYS. Being late wasn't something he could afford this time; it was time for him to speed things up.

"Killer Move Serious Series: Serious Sprint."

With the increasing sense of frustration and the excitement of a possibly worthy opponent flowing through him, he began running so fast, it looked like he was flying. Saitama attempted to do the time in his head; it had taken Saitama around 30 minutes to get from L-City to S-City, and that was while he was holding back and having to fight a lot of the monsters. If he kept going at his maximum speed, it would probably take him half, maybe a third of that time for him to make it back to his home in Z-city. And with the newly implemented road system which all led to A-city, it would be a piece of cake to find his way back to the Association and find out where the big fight was at.

"DEVIL OF FROST, HERE I COME!"

* * *

The duel between the two handsome fighters waged on thousands of miles away, with both fighters giving it all they had. Strands of hair fluttered in the air, a few covering their faces, and others actually managing to intertwine with each other. The faces of both of the fighters was relaxed and calm, their eyes clear of any hostile emotions and filled with a relaxing sensation. Every punch, every kick, every blow they exchanged only heightened their sense of respect for one another as they got to better analyze each other's refined and beautiful movements.

Bang studied this battle with increased curiosity and tumult. Bang edged closer to his older brother. "Interesting... Can you see it?"

"I can see it." Garou, who had edged closer to the heroes and was a couple feet away from the old fart, had heard him, and answered his question.

Bomb nodded. "It's ridiculous. I can see it in their movements. Both of them are holding back, keeping any killing intent at bay."

Garou frowned. "It's as if this was a friendly jostle, with neither of them trying to scar or even badly damage opponents. They're fighting each other like they're actually friends."

What they didn't notice was that Frieza had picked up on this behavior as well. With his wine bottle and bread & cheese platter on both of his armrests, Frieza floated his hover chair down to just a few meters above the surface of the battlefield, and just right above the Ginyu Force. "Zarbon, what are you doing?"

This question from his master caused Zarbon to forcefully push Sweet Mask away with an invisible ki blast with both of his hands. Zarbon immediately turned to his master, straightened his back, and put his hands to his side. "I'm fighting, my lord? I don't get the question."

"Oh, nothing nothing, Hey Zarbon, I have a joke for you. It just popped up in my head. Stop me if you've heard it. How many gays does it take to screw in a lightbulb?"

"How does that relate to m-"

"None, because their too busy screwing each other!" This homophobic joke elicited a few chuckles from the heroes and even some from the Ginyu Force, while Puri-Puri-Prisoner clenched his teeth even harder than ever. "So can you stop making out with your boyfriend and actually get serious?"

"The lizards got a point, man!" shouted Metal Bat. "You didn't come here to "socialize"! You came to kick some Space Pirate ass! Now get on with it! I want a crack at one of these posers!"

Zarbon bowed to his master. "As you wish, Lord Frieza."

"Alright, alright. But not because you told me to. I was just warming up, so I figure that now I'm all warmed up, I figure he deserves fighting me at my fullest," replied Sweet Mask.

"Now then..." Zarbon swerved back to his opponent and raised his hand up to him. "Elegant Blaster!" An orange stream of energy came bursting out of Zarbon's palm, headed straight for Sweet Mask. But instead of dodging the blast, Sweet Mask stayed as still as a rock, to the confusion of his heroic acquaintances.

"What are you doing?" shouted Superalloy Darkshine. "Get outta there!"

"No. An attack as glamorous as this can't be dodged. I have to face this head-on." Sweet Mask bent his knees and reached his hands out for what was about to come blasting all over him. When Zarbon's Elegant Blaster hit Sweet Mask, a huge struggle ensued. Sweet Mask's calm composure vanished. Sparks of electricity and energy were flying from the blast, and the hero could feel the heat from the energy rising in his hands.

Astonishment was racing through all of the heroes minds. "More beings who can conjure up their inner energy into physical form? Amazing..." said Bang to no one in particular.

"Is that all you've got?"

"If this is all he can take, then it looks like they're not going to make it to second base after all..." whispered Frieza to himself. "Oh wait, I might have spoken too soon..." The scene was now changing; Sweet Mask was gaining ground, pushing the Elegant Blaster wave back. His face was no longer a grimace, but rather a serious and stone-cold mask. The hero let out a vociferous shout, and sent the energy wave hurtling back, straight toward Frieza. But unfortunately for Sweet Mask, such an attack wouldn't even scratch that devil. For Frieza, all it took to deflect it was a flick of his fingers, where it then lit up the sky in a fiery yellow explosion.

"Sorry for this, Zarbon. I really am. But the twig master makes a valid point: playtime is over. It's time for me to show you that I'm not that sweet."

Zarbon shrugged. "Fine by me. Let's turn up the heat." Zarbon lunged for Sweet Mask, and like that, the fight resumed. Zarbon resumed the fight with a hard right uppercut, but Sweet Mask smoothly dodged it. The hero countered by sweeping Zarbon's feet, successfully knocking Zarbon off the ground. While in midair, Sweet Mask slammed his fist downward, hitting Zarbon square in the jaw. Zarbon groaned in pain, but toughed it out and fired two energy waves, which propelled him back and out of the reach of Sweet Mask. But it wasn't quick enough.

Just as Zarbon was going to get up onto his feet, Sweet Mask charged at him at an incredible speed. Zarbon swung a hard right kick at Sweet Mask, but Sweet Mask caught it, returning Zarbon's blow with a left elbow which hit Zarbon in the stomach. He winced in agony once again. "No way. You were hiding this much strength?"

"This is the unmitigated rage I have toward all things evil. You disappoint me, Zarbon. You would have been an amazing hero. But now, you are nothing more than an enemy. Now taste defeat." Sweet Mask craned his right leg back, then using all of his strength, the hero kicked Zarbon straight up into the air. Zarbon was hurtling toward the sky, astonished at the high gap between them. A rather unsavory thought flashed through Zarbon's brain. If things kept going like this, his stamina would be all but depleted. The only way he could stand victorious over Sweet Mask was if he went all out. Yes, the only way to win was to transform.

Zarbon always hated transforming; the sheer ugliness of his transformation was a vulgar abomination that he wished he was never born with. And to transform himself in front of such an amazingly looking fighter as Sweet Mask was a disgrace. But he was out of options; he had already used the Elegant Blaster, his most powerful attack, to no avail. He had no choice: he was going to go all out.

As the rate of his velocity decreased, Zarbon leveled himself while in the air, until his body became upright. "I have to hand it to you Sweet Mask, you're quite the formidable foe indeed." Zarbon looked from up high at his opponent, slowly floating down to the ground as he spoke. "But you have absolutely no idea what you've gotten yourself into. Since you've been so generous as to show me the full extent of your power, I find it is only fair that I demonstrate my own true power. You see, I've been hiding another side of me."

"Where? In the closet?" said Frieza, chuckling as he did. The two combatants ignored the derogatory joke.

"You've been holding back your true power? Please. I've seen your fighting style; there's no way you could be concealing any more of your power."

"Is that so? Have you ever heard the saying beauty is skin deep? Well, right now, you're only seeing the beauty." Sweet Mask gave him a confused look. "I was really hoping I wouldn't have to resort to this, especially against you of all people, but you've left me no choice.

"Now prepare yourself for the beast within!" Zarbon extended his arms and spread his legs. The change in Zarbon's body was instantaneous; his arm and leg muscles bulged to nearly twice their original size; the smooth, light green skin was now blotched with small bumps. Sweet Mask looked upon this in horror and dreaded shock. Zarbon smiled at Sweet Mask's fear-ridden face; his once beautiful, flawless face bulged out. His nose had completely disappeared; his pearly whites were now sharp daggers that looked like teeth of a wild animal. The smooth skin became covered with these green bumps like those on his arms and legs, and fat folds of skin became apparent all around his chin. Then, as the final restraint of power was lifted, his entire body pumped up as the hidden energy flowed through his body, giving him around an extra foot of height in the process.

"And the bear has finally come out of hibernation! It's been many years since I've seen this bear come out into the light."

"Hahaha! Repulsive, isn't it? I'm sorry you had to see this; judging by the look on your face, this is even more ugly for you than it is for me. But sadly, things are about to get a whole lot uglier. You thought you were at the top? Well, it's about time I taught you where your place is: at the bottom, on your knees, begging for mercy."

Zarbon sprinted toward Sweet Mask as the 2nd round began. Zarbon started his counter attack with a right knee to Sweet Mask's gut, thus returning the favor. Sweet Mask didn't even try to block his attacks. Zarbon smirked; it looked like he was too scared to even move a muscle. Zarbon smacked him hard across the face, sending him flying onto the ground. Zarbon sprinted to him and kicked him in the chest, propelling up a few feet in the air. While he was in the air, Zarbon grabbed him by the foot and flung his lifeless body into the stone platform.

The heroes watched this beating in disgust. "His power wasn't the only thing that changed," said Bang.

"Yes," replied Bomb. "His fighting style has become much more brutish, more unrefined than before. He's tossing him around like a doll."

"It's as if he's become an animal," added Garou.

"But why isn't that sweety fighting back?" asked Puri-Puri-Prisoner. "He's just letting himself be pummeled."

"I'm not quite sure, but if I had to guess, he seems to be in some sort of petrified state of mind," said Bomb.

"This is... the worst evil." This was the only way Sweet Mask could sum up Zarbon's transformation. His greatest weakness was that he became immobilized when faced with truly ugly opponents; his nature simply couldn't overcome it. But what made this all-the-more shocking for him was the fact that such a handsome fighter as this required to sacrifice his beautiful appearance in exchange for strength. He could feel the rise in power; Zarbon was now twice as strong as he was before, and he was worlds faster as well. If it were a naturally ugly fighter, it was bad, but that was the way such lowly creatures gained strength. But if such a good-looking fighter couldn't grow stronger on his own, then was Sweet Mask's destiny to be as ugly of a monster as this? Could he not live in a world where both strength and beauty could coexist? These questions were running rampant through his mind.

"What's wrong, Sweet Mask? Don't tell me that after all that talk, you can't muster up the courage to even stand! Get up! Attack me! Prove your worth as the graceful Sweet Mask you claim to be!" Zarbon's words managed to smack some sense into him, and he took a defensive stance. Sweet Mask launched a flurry of punches at Zarbon with as much power as he could possibly muster, but Zarbon met every attack blow-for-blow. Zarbon's demeanor was still supremely confident; Zarbon thrust Sweet Mask back with a energy blast, causing him to yell out in pain. Using his pain to his advantage, Zarbon grabbed Sweet Mask by the head and started to smash his forehead with his own. Every head butt drew more and more blood, and made him even more disoriented than he already was. "As much fun as this is, I find that this has dragged on long enough. Now for the finishing move!" Zarbon grabbed him by both of his arms, and began swinging him around at a rapid speed. After about 20 spins, Zarbon finally released him, speeding him toward the opposite side of the arena, toward the group of heroes. He raised his palm, and formed a wave of purple energy at the palm of his hand.

"Ultimate Graceful Cannon Blast!" The giant purple attack wave soared through the air, aimed straight for Sweet Mask. There was no time for the hero to dodge it, and no energy left to stop it. The energy wave enveloped all around Sweet Mask, creating a blinding purple light which completely blinded all of the heroes, forcing them to shield their eyes.

As the bright light of the attack started to wane, Sweet Mask's form started to come into focus. He was lying on the ground, his right cheek resting against the stone tile. His clothes were covered with smudges, and his pretty face was broken and bruised almost beyond recognition. Zarbon's face was neutral. "I hadn't meant to damage his pretty face with that attack, but I suppose that's the nature of the beast within." The elegant fighter walked over to his opponent with a calm and confident stride in his movements.

Once they were able to distinguish that Sweet Mask was indeed passed out, the Ginyu Force began to lightly applaud Zarbon, nodding at each other like confirming to each other that Zarbon had done a satisfactory job in his battle. Frieza soon joined in this light applause, even whistling to Zarbon, while Vegeta simply scowled and kept his arms crossed as one would expect from the Prince of Saiyans.

Once Zarbon was standing directly over Sweet Mask's lifeless body, he picked the hero up by his back and legs in a bridal-style fashion. He looked at the rest of the heroes with contempt in his eyes, which they returned with equally hateful stares. "You're all going to die. If someone as handsome as this couldn't beat me, then you don't stand a chance. The Ginyu Force will tear you apart." Without warning, Zarbon's body shrunk, the muscle mass he gained quickly disappearing and his body regressing back to his regular form. Zarbon slowly dropped Sweet Mask to the ground, and left the heroes with a loud scowl.

* * *

 _Round One goes to the Space Pirates! Until Chapter 17!_


	17. Round Two: Two Green Midgets?

Once Zarbon was standing directly over Sweet Mask's lifeless body, he picked the hero up by his back and legs in a bridal-style fashion. He looked at the rest of the heroes with contempt in his eyes, which they returned with equally hateful stares. "You're all going to die. If someone as handsome as this couldn't beat me, then you don't stand a chance. The Ginyu Force will tear you apart." Without warning, Zarbon's body shrunk, the muscle mass he gained quickly disappearing and his body regressing back to his regular form. Zarbon slowly dropped Sweet Mask to the ground, and left the heroes with a loud scowl.

Once he dropped off Sweet Mask's body to the heroes, he quickly flew to his master. "Lord Frieza! Did you enjoy the fight?"

"Oh yes! You did a marvelous job! Certainly much better than Dodoria..."

"But I have a question. Why were you making all those homosexual jokes toward me?"

This caught Frieza totally off guard. Did he actually had to explain it to him? The practical point of jokes was that you didn't have to explain why it's funny, so why was Zarbon trying to take the fun out of his comedy? It took him a few seconds before he could answer Zarbon's question. "Uhhhh... It's because you're into men."

Zarbon's smile turned into a frown. "What made you think that? Not that I have any problems with gays, but what made you think I was one?"

"Oh come on! I've heard your skype calls to your "girlfriend" named Chuck. And besides, everything about you really just screams that you swing for the other team."

"Chuck is just a nickname we made up because of a funny mistake that happened on our 5th anniversary dinner we had; the waiter called her "Chuck" by accident. Her real name is Charolette."

"Oh. Oh..." Frieza's face reddened, becoming as ripe as a tomato. "Well uhhh..." Frieza rubbed the back of his neck in a awkwardly nervous fashion, his mind as blank as paper. What the hell had he gotten himself into? I mean, to Frieza, Zarbon fit every single category of homosexuality, both stereotypical and non-stereotypical, and any other sane person would reach the same foregone conclusion. So how the hell had he gotten this wrong? And why did it have to be like this of all possible scenarios? He'd never been so uncomfortable in his life.

Just a few feet behind him, Vegeta was about to burst like a balloon with how much laughter he was trying to contain. Even after all of the shit he'd been through, something like this only happened once in a lifetime. The look on Frieza's face was golden, and he cursed himself for not having a camera on his scouter.

"I'm... I'm... I'm..." The words were stuck in Frieza's throat, or rather, his brain, because his brain literally could not comprehend the word he was trying to say. No such word existed in his vocabulary.

"You're sorry?" said Zarbon.

"Yes, that. I think." Frieza sighed and put his hand to his forehead. "It's just that I really thought I had that pegged. Next, you're going to tell me that all of the Ginyu's are straight."

"Uh, my lord, if I may..." Ginyu and the rest of his subordinates had been listening in on this conversation between Frieza and Zarbon, and they couldn't help but hear their names being mentioned by Lord Frieza.

Frieza's eyes widened as big as dinner plates, and he smacked both his hands to his forehead. "NO... NOOOOO..."

"Wait, you thought we were ALL homosexual, Lord Frieza?" said Burter. "I have a girlfriend! And so does Jeice! We go on double dates like twice per month!"

"That's right!" Jeice friendly nudged Burter in his ribcage. "That lady of yours is a real special bugger there, mate! Don't you forget it!" Burter smiled and returned the gesture.

"Oh my god! I told you guys!" shouted Guldo. The team looked at Guldo, wondering what the hell he was talking about. "What, you don't remember? Counting this planet, this is the 27th planet with fighters that have called us queers or homos. Don't you remember I mentioned that in the spa?"

"Oh yea... Recoome remembers that." Recoome put his palm to his forehead and stared at the ground in bewilderment. "My god, is that really the impression that we give? I mean, Recoome doesn't have a problem with gays either, but Recoome just feel that if people think we're gay, we kind of lose some of our reputation as the most dangerous members of the Frieza Force. Is Recoome making sense here?" His teammates gave him nods of agreements.

"My god... How could I be the leader of this team and not realize that?"

"It's not your fault, Captain. Don't give yourself too much credit." Guldo floated up to the Captain's shoulder and laid his hand on his right shoulder pad. "Besides, there's a very simple solution to this."

"Really?"

"There is?"

"Well tell us!"

"Don't leave us in the dark!"

"Isn't it obvious? We need a chick on our team! That's probably why people think we're gay! Haven't you seen all those dance shows or power rangers shows when you were kids? They all had at least one chick on the team, sometimes two! So all we need is to add a really powerful girl to our team, and we're set!" The team let out gasps and ohh's of amazement at Guldo's suggestion; they just couldn't believe that Guldo, of all people, had known this all along while the rest of the Ginyu's were in the dark about this. "That would DEFINITELY solve your problem," said Frieza.

"Alright. Then it's settled. Once we're finished with this planet, we're going to hold tryouts for a sixth member. Although it's going to be annoying to have to recreate our introducing fighting poses after all the time we spent perfecting it."

"It's fine, Captain. This just gives us the chance to make the intro poses better than ever," said Burter.

"Good point. Now WHO'S THE GREATEST CAPTAIN IN THE UNIVERSE?!"

The teammates smiled and yelled the obvious answer as loud as they could. "YOU! GINYU RULES!"

"That's right!" Captain Ginyu set his sights back on the heroes. He noted that some of them were tending or at the very least looking over their fallen comrades, while the rest were simply either staring out into the sky or straight at the scene they just caused. "Now that that's out of the way, who wants to be the seco-"

"HEY DOUCHEBAGS!" Tornado had reached the limit of her patience with these idiotic tools; she couldn't believe she'd been polite enough to let these guys have their own retarded talk about their team image. "HOW ABOUT INSTEAD OF HAVING THIS SELF-IMPOSED MID-LIFE CRISIS, YOU ACTUALLY PAY ATTENTION TO THE PEOPLE WHO CAME HERE TO KILL YOU?! SINCE I'M THE ONE WHO MADE THE ARENA, AND IM THE ONE WHO HAD TO SLOW DOWN FOR THE REST OF THESE SLOWPOKES, I, I, THE TORNADO OF TERROR, AM GONNA BE YOUR NEXT OPPONENT IN YOUR SADISTIC GAMES! SO WHAT WILL IT BE?! WHICH ONE OF YOU IDIOTS IS GONNA GROW A PAIR AND FIGHT ME?!"

"Oh oh Captain!" Guldo was the first to volunteer, desperately jumping up and down midair. "Let me have a crack at her! You know I haven't had a decent bout with another esper in ages, and I wanna teach this girl who's really the boss around here! I mean, just listen to her! Tell me you don't want to rip out her throat when you hear her talk!"

"Completely," said Frieza, which prompted the rest of his subordinates to agree.

"Well then it's decided! Go get'er tiger!"

"WO HOO! Thank you, Captain! I won't let you down!"

Guldo floated down to the arena, where Tornado was impatiently waiting for the short fat blob to come down and fight her.

What the other heroes didn't notice was that Garou was excited to see this fight. Garou never had any experience fighting an esper, and he had absolutely no idea what kind of methods could defeat them, the best fighting style to employ, what kind of weaknesses they had, or really anything. This would be the perfect opportunity to see exactly how the most powerful weapon of the Hero Association, the hero that made monsters shiver in terror, fought her battles. This was going to be good.

"Are you kidding me? You're gonna fight me?" Tornado looked up to the space pirates. "This is a joke, right? He's a freaking midget!"

"Look who's talking! You look like you're twelve years old!"

"I'm 28!"

"EXACTLY!"

"Alright, you know what? That's it! I'm gonna shove those extra eyes up your ass so the last thing you'll ever see is the huge shit you took on your life by fighting me!"

Frieza let out a hearty laugh. "Let the 2nd round begin!"

Guldo was the first one to strike; cupping his palms together, Guldo fired a large blast of yellow spherical energy. As the distance closed in between the energy blast and Tatsumaki, the female esper floated in the air, and when the energy blast was just feet away from her, she used her psychic energy and split the attack into two. Still not done, Tatsumaki halted the movement of the now two energy blasts, and with another swing of her hands, sent the energy blasts right back at Guldo.

All four of Guldo's eyes widened, and the small alien frantically dodged his attacks with movements of a bafoon dancing on the street.

Garou scoffed at his small stature and general immobility. He could tell right away with those movements that this one didn't train whatsoever to increase his strength and relied too much on his flight and energy projection.

Guldo snarled. "Oh you think you're so cool with your psychic abilities, don't you? Well guess what? You're not the only one!"

"Oh?"

Guldo raised his arm, and from the ground poked up another stick-like rock. Guldo clasped his fingers together, and the tip of the rock sharpened until it was razor-sharp. The green alien then chucked it with awesome speed towards Tatsumaki. But the female esper needed only another swat of her hand to send it flying to her right, where it lodged itself into the ground.

Tatsumaki laughed at this weak display of psychic powers. "Congratulations. You're officially stronger than I was as a 5-year-old."

Guldo snarled. "Oh yea? Well let's see you mock this!" Guldo bent his knees down and gradually began shouting, lifting his arms as he shouted. Suddenly, the rocks that were debris from the previous battles started to shake and levitate. Then, a boulder around the size of a football field began to rise from the surrounding rubble. The boulder slowly made its way towards Guldo. Once the boulder was directly above Guldo's head, it became stationary.

"Lets see how long it takes for your bones to get crushed! HYAH!" Thrusting his hands as hard as he could, Guldo sent the boulder catapulting to Tatsumaki.

"DIE!"

But the Tornado of Terror wouldn't be subdued by such a minute display of psychokinesis; no, Guldo was a fool for thinking something like this would hurt her, especially after he saw her psychic abilities firsthand. As soon as the boulder was about to touch her head, Tatsumaki lifted her hand, leaving only inches between her forehead and the boulder. "What a joke..."

Tatsumaki lifted her other hand. A deep rumbling could be heard not too far behind the rest of the heroes, and when they turned around, all of their eyes bulged out of their sockets. Floating in the air were 20 boulders that were nearly two times the size of the rock Guldo had lifted off of the ground.

"Oh crapBASKETS!" Guldo screamed this unusual swear word when he saw 21 boulders being thrown at him with 10 times the speed he'd thrown his own boulder.

Feeling forced in a corner, Guldo did the thing that he and he alone could do, something that not even Lord Frieza possessed in his arsenal of awesome powers; taking in a deep breath, Guldo closed his eyes and took command of the flow of time.

"TIME FREEZE!"

Guldo waited a second before opening his eyes. When he did, he let out a breath of relief. Everything was frozen in place; Tatsumaki had an annoyed look of boredom on her face, and the rest of the heroes behind her seemed to be somewhat shocked at this amazing display of psychokinesis by Tatsumaki. It was a good thing he'd done it in time, or else he probably would have had his bones crushed by all of the boulders piled onto him at that speed. Guldo shivered at the thought.

'Ok, if I take another one of those surprise attacks again, I'm gonna be ground to a pulp. So I gotta land a surprise attack of my own. Maybe if I go over here...'. Guldo sprinted about 100 feet to his upper right. 'No, a better spot would be over there...'. Guldo ran in a semicircle around the frozen Tatsumaki until he was standing right behind her.

'No, this still isn't good enough. Maybe over there is-". Without warning, a tightness began to constrain his lungs. 'No, I can't be out of breath already. Hold it... together...'

Finally unable to take the pain anymore, Guldo let out a deep exhale, causing the surrounding environment to be restored to the natural time flow. As soon as time was restored, the 21 boulders continued on their path. But instead of hitting Guldo, they merely crashed onto the ground below the arena, creating a huge dust cloud that covered the edge of the arena and the pile of rocks that now presided beside the arena..

"Guess its already over," said Tatsumaki. "Figures."

"Guess again, bitch!"

"Huh?"

Before she even had the time to figure out how in the hell Guldo had gotten around her so fast, her reflexes kicked in and created a psychic barrier to defend herself from being kicked in the back with a right kick. However, she wasn't quick enough to completely build up the psychic barrier, and it was because of this that Guldo managed to scrape her shoulder blade. The wound actually managed to draw a tad bit of blood, but other than that, she was unharmed and undeterred in her desire to kill Guldo.

Guldo, on the other hand, had just landed face-first on the ground after Tatsumaki had managed to set up that psychic barrier and narrowly dodge his attack.

Up in the sky, the Ginyu Force, Frieza, Zarbon, and Vegeta could already tell that Guldo had bitten off more than he could chew with this bitch. Not only was she a more powerful esper, but her reflexes were also nothing to be mocked. Even after Guldo had used his Time Freeze, she was still able to mostly avoid Guldo's attack with only minimal difficulty.

"Yo Guldo! What are ya doin mate?!" shouted Jeice.

"You're embarrassing us!" yelled Recoome.

"If ya get killed or lose, we'll have to consider this chick as your replacement!" shouted Jeice.

"WHAT?!" Guldo gulped and turned back to his comrades, whom he could instantly tell by their faces that they were none too pleased about how this fight was going.

"Look at the facts! She fits your profile, and even exceeds it! She has your same powers, but with added steroids, she's not fat, and she's a chick! The very same change to our team that you brought up before! Even better, she's just as short as you, so we won't have to change the entrance poses!"

"Good point, Burter." Captain Ginyu patted him on the shoulder, causing Burter to beam in delight. The captain then turned his attention back to Guldo. "Sorry Guldo, but they all make great points. If you don't win here, you're going to be replaced. Or at the very least, you'll become a backup member."

"GAHHH!" Guldo had no idea how he was going to solve this. None of his attacks fazed her, and running with his Time Freeze could only do so much, and if he couldn't deal any damage, his Time Freeze was almost useless. He was done for.

"Recoome wonders how big the gap is between their powers. Let Recoome see..." Recoome turned on his scouter. It quickly beeped to life, and as soon as it did, Recoome clicked the button on the side of the scouter and honed in on Tatsumaki. But when the scouter gave him it's reading of Tatsumaki's power, he couldn't believe what he was seeing.

"Huh? This doesn't make any sense! According to this scouter, the power of that little girl is 12!"

The Ginyu's, Frieza, Zarbon, and Vegeta turned to Recoome to see his smile that obviously indicated he was pulling a prank on them. But Recoome's face showed no lies. "There's no way!"

Reluctant to believe Recoome's tall tales, each of them turned their scouters on, and when they honed in on Tatsumaki's energy level, all of their faces became just as puzzled as Recoome's. "This is ridiculous!"

"What the hell is going on?"

"GUYS! ARE YOU SERIOUS?!" shouted Guldo from the arena. Guldo turned back to Tornado, who was rubbing her shoulder blade. "What's the deal with you..." Guldo attempted to ponder the explanation by this unnaturally low energy level from such a powerful esper. He began to do the reasoning in his head: psychokinesis wasn't an added ability of internal energy, and only a few skilled beings were even capable of utilizing their energy for psychokinesis, and even then they weren't nearly as capable as naturally born espers. Guldo knew for a fact that he was weaker in terms of fighting abilities than the rest of his teammates, but he made up for that with his Time Freeze and psychic abilities. Now that he thought about it, if she was as powerful in terms of physical aptitude as she was with her psychic powers, that kick that he just landed on her shouldn't have done much damage, or any damage at all for that matter. Yet he could see that Tornado had been slightly injured by it, and even now was rubbing on the wound to ease the pain.

"Ahhhh... I think I get it now! YES! I know your weakness, you dumb broad!"

This caused Tornado to stop her rubbing and stared at Guldo with her angry eyes. "What did you say?"

"You heard me! You're all bark and no real bite! It'll take maybe 5 minutes to take you down now that I know your achilles heel!"

"I DON'T HAVE AN ACHILLES HELL, YOU HEAR ME?!" Tatsumaki raised her hands and fired a wave of psychic energy at Guldo. But before she even had the chance to blink, Guldo suddenly vanished out of sight.

"Over here!" Tornado abruptly turned, only to see Guldo with his palms cupped together and a purple energy ball forming in his palms. He then fired the energy wave, which Tatsumaki managed to deflect straight up into the sky, with barely any time to spare. "STOP MOVING SO I CAN PROPERLY PULVERIZE YOU!" With rising anger beginning to power Tatsumaki, the female esper launched another psychic attack at Guldo. But just as before, the attack was met with no target. Tornado's eyebrows furrowed, and on the sidelines, the S-class heroes were giving each other puzzled looks because like Tornado, none of them had seen Guldo move at all.

"What's the matter, Tornado of Terror? You were talking all that good shit a second ago!" Ramming up from behind Tornado, Guldo launched a volley of jab punches. Tornado attempted to turn around so she could give a proper counter-attack, but by the time she did, Guldo had already launched himself out of her range.

"You know, when I first saw you, my FIRST thought and definite conclusion was that you're a boner killer." Her teeth became jagged, and her pupils disappeared in an anime-like fashion. "I mean, look at you! The only thing you have going for you in bed is that you don't have to get on your knees."

Tatsumaki screamed, and fired a consecutive stream of psychic attacks at Guldo with pure anger fueling her. The force from the attacks caused the tiles in the arena to crack, creating more dust clouds. Despite her inability to see what was in the dust cloud, Tornado continued her assault. After about 20 seconds of this ferocious outburst, Tornado's attacks started to slow down, until her arms were down at her sides. The entire crowd of spectators were watching the dust cloud, waiting to see what had happened to the green alien. But as the dust cleared, it revealed nothing. Tornado, refusing to believe her attack didn't work, started to look around to see where Guldo had gone.

"TORNADO! ABOVE YOU!" shouted King.

Tornado craned her head up, and sure enough, Guldo was floating about 20 feet in the air, giggling in delight. For some reason, instead of preparing another energy attack, a purple aura had enveloped Guldo's right fist. With a confident shout, Guldo descended to the ground, his fist burning brighter as he got closer to Tornado.

"TORNADO! SOMETHING ISN'T RIGHT ABOUT THAT! YOU SHOULD DODGE INSTEAD OF FACING IT HEAD-ON LIKE SWEET MASK SHOULD HAVE DONE!" shouted Bomb.

"DON'T TELL ME WHAT TO DO!" Tornado grunted, and a light green aura shimmered all over her body. "Haven't you learned, moron? My psychic barrier can take any attack you dish out at me!"

"Well then lets see if I can penetrate your protection with my fist and blow my load all over your insides!" Guldo swung his fist straight into Tatsumaki's chest. As soon as these two incredible energies clashed, lightning began sparking all around the two espers. The point of resistance was now a bright light, too bright to be looked at directly unless the onlookers wanted to temporarily blinded. But the three martial artists soon began to notice a shift in the tide of this clash. One by one, the rest of the heroes and space pirates saw this as well. The purple light from Guldo's energized fist was starting to outshine the glow of Tatsumaki's green psychic barrier. Tornado couldn't believe this. "There's no way you could have channeled this much power! How did you manage to gather up so much energy in such a short amount of time?!"

"A true magician never reveals his secrets. And your act is getting stale. So how about I close the curtains on your magic show to save you the humiliation?" Guldo then suddenly withdrew his fist from the clash, confusing Tornado. Knowing she would be distracted, Guldo kneed her hard in the stomach, using some of the leftover energy he gathered together to add a little more juice to his attack. Tatsumaki didn't even have the time to put up another barrier from the emotional anger and confusion churning in her brain. The breath was knocked straight out of her. Barely being able to stay on her two feet, Tornado wobbled on the stone tiles.

Guldo let out a malicious laugh. "Is it over already?"

His question was answered; Tornado raised both her hands and fired a huge light green wave of psychic energy. "You think I'm done yet?! I'm going to deal all the damage you gave to me, and MULTIPLY IT BY A THOUSAND!" But as before, Guldo vanished out of her line of sight, reappearing to her left and landing a hard left kick to her face.

Guldo grinned; he could feel her psychic barrier getting weaker. If she kept on focusing her energy on her attacks and not her psychic barriers, he'd finish her in one minute. Two minutes if he was sloppy.

Bang, Bomb, and Garou could see how easily Tornado was playing into her opponent's hands. She was letting anger and pride cloud her judgement, and if she didn't snap out of it, she stood no chance of winning. Bang was the first of the three to speak what was on all of their minds. "Tornado, you need to calm down! Whatever trick he has, he's somehow able to avoid all of your attacks! You should go on the defensive and try to come up with a plan instead of blatantly and mindlessly launching psychic blasts at him! Just stop being such a melodramatic little girl and try thinking of a strategy for once!"

Bang was thrust back a few hundred feet, until he was lodged into one of the boulders that were all around the valley. Everyone gasped when they realized that Tornado was the one who sent him flying with her psychic blast. "BANG!" Bomb sprinted to his brother's aid, while Garou smirked at his former master's lifeless form. "SHUT UP! JUST SHUT UP, OLD MAN! I DON'T NEED YOU TO TELL ME HOW TO FIGHT MY BATTLES! NEXT TO BLAST, I'M THE STRONGEST HERO IN THE ASSOCIATION! AND FOR THE REST OF YOU CHUMPS!" Tatsumaki stared angrily at the rest of the spectating heroes. "YOU THINK YOU'RE HOT SHIT?! WITHOUT ME, YOU'D ALL ALREADY BE BURIED UNDER A PILE OF ALIEN BULLETS, OR BE CRUSHED UNDER THE WEIGHT OF A GIANT FREAKING GODZILLA MONSTER! I'M POPULAR, I'M TALENTED, EVERYBODY LOVES ME, AND I AM THE HERO ASSOCIATION! NOBODY ELSE!"

"Hey Tornado!"

"What?!"

"You forgot something..." Guldo couldn't believe how easily she'd ignored him. He didn't even have to use his time freeze to gather the energy needed to send this bitch out of the arena. "You think you're a tornado? Well then, here comes the hurricane."

Guldo jumped and kicked Tornado as hard as he possibly could with a right side kick, and coupled with the energy he had been channeling into his leg, made it something that Tatsumaki's barriers could no hold back with all of the damage she sustained. Tatsumaki was sent flying out of the arena with the momentum from Guldo's kick still keeping his foot firmly locked onto Tatsumaki's back. Their midair flight was finally stopped when they reached the boulder that Bang had just been slammed into moments ago. Tornado was sent face-first into the boulder, creating a mini-crater in the process. Bang and Bomb looked at this in horror just a few feet below. The savage beatdown was gruesome indeed.

"It's over. I won." Guldo released his foot from Tornado's back, causing her to fall to the ground like a stone. Bomb quickly caught Tornado before she hit the ground. He grimaced at her unconscious and severely beaten state. "Her wounds run deep..." Bomb turned his attention back to his younger brother. "Are you alright, brother?"

"I'm fine. That was nothing, really. In fact, it knocked a kink loose in my shoulder." This joke actually managed to get a laugh out of Bomb. But that laugh soon faded when he heard more laughter from the enemy side. Both Bang and Bomb sneered at the jovial attitude of these disgraceful space pirates. Only monsters like them could celebrate the torture and humiliating defeat of their opponents like this.

On the other side, the Ginyu's had all put Guldo on their shoulders, chanting his name with pride, all five of them smiling in sheer ecstasy.

"GULDO! GULDO! GULDO! GULDO! GULDO! GULDO! GULDO! GULDO!"

After about a minute of this chanting, they finally took him off of their shoulders and gathered around Guldo, patting him on the shoulder, laughing in delight and some disbelief as well.

"Fucking crikey! Guldo, mate, how'd you do that?!"

"It was so easy! Once you told me her power level was 12, I started thinking to myself, and I realized she must only use her psychic abilities, and without them, she was 100 times weaker than just one of our foot soldiers! And she couldn't have made it easier! All I had to do was get her riled up with insults and make sure she stayed on the offensive so she wouldn't keep her psychic barriers up. And even better, she stayed in one place, so I didn't have to worry about her being faster than me or wasting time tracking her movements!"

"But how did you gather so much energy to break through her defenses?" questioned Burter.

"I just used the excess time I had during the time freeze to gather up as much energy as I possibly could. Then, once I felt I had enough energy or I ran out of breath, I'd move to another spot and BOOM!"

Laughter poured out from the Ginyu's once more.

"I must say Guldo, you did outstanding, simply outstanding." Frieza had floated down to be at eye-level with the rest of the Ginyu's. "I honestly thought you were done for, but you managed to outmatch a stronger opponent with tactics and trickery, all-the-while making witty insults. It was almost like looking in a mirror."

Guldo smiled even wider, and graciously bowed to Lord Frieza. "Such praise from you is the highest praise I can think of. I'm honored to know that you thought so highly of my battle, and I thank you for your kind words." Frieza gave Guldo a wink, and levitated his chair back to the higher ground beside Zarbon and Vegeta.

It was the Captain who spoke next. "Guldo, I have to say, I didn't know you were capable of coming up with such clever plans like that!" Guldo blushed. "I owe you an apology. You proved today that you're a pivotal member to this team, and you could never be replaced." This was met with nods of agreement by the rest of the team.

"Aw, Captain..."

"In your honor, I declare that on our next vacation, you will be the chief advisor for all of our activities!"

"Wh-What?" Did Guldo here him right? Being the chief advisor for their activities was a very special privilege for Captain Ginyu, and he always took pride in being the leader on their vacations. "Are you being serious Captain?"

"Completely; you've earned it. All in favor of Guldo being the leader for our next vacation?"

"AYE!"

"Then the motion is passed!"

Guldo let out a chuckle in disbelief. "I think this is the greatest day of my life..."

Laughter rang out yet again.

"So right now, we're two-for-two. Anybody in the mood to go next?"

Each of the Ginyu's were trying to figure out how they would settle this debacle, but before a tiebreaker could even be decided, Recoome instantaneously flew down to the center of the arena. Once Burter and Jeice realized this, they both started yelling insults at Recoome.

"Mate! That's not how we're doin this! Get your arse back up here!"

"You're not playing fair!"

"Oh, stop your bickering." Frieza's voice silenced any more insults that the two Ginyu's had to say. "Life isn't fair. You two were distracted, and he took the moment. So he's the next fighter. No buts."

The two grumbled, crossing their arms like children being scolded by their parents.

Recoome snickered to himself as he watched them get scolded, with Guldo following suit.

"GO GET'EM RECOOME!" shouted Guldo, who was still glowing from his victory.

"RECOOME WILL BEAT THESE CHUMPS JUST FOR YOU, GULDO!"

Then, he raised his hands to the sky, motioning for the next contestant to step forth. "Recoome is ready to enter the third round! Now which one of you sissy-pants has the guts, the moxie, and the passion to stand up here and go toe-to-toe with Recoome, the bringer of DOOM!"

Half of the heroes were checking the wounds of Tatsumaki and double checking Sweet Mask's injuries, and the other half was still standing cross-armed and silent. But once Recoome came down to the arena, all of the heroes gave him their attention. All of the heroes were staring at each other, seeing if anyone was jumping in their place in excitement for this next opponent, but nobody seemed to be interested. Or at least, that's what it seemed. For it was the lowest S-class hero yet perhaps the most humble of them all, Puri-Puri-Prisoner, who volunteered himself to be the next runner up in this competition.

"Yo Puri! You sure you don't want me to be the next fighter?" said Superalloy Darkshine.

"Don't you have faith in me Darky?" replied Puri-Puri-Prisoner.

"Uhhh..." He shifted in slight discomfort, yet Superalloy still couldn't help but crack a smile. "My bad. You've totally got this. Now go show that punk the power of us muscle-men."

"Oh, I will. This is going to be a battle of the angels."

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 _Oh, and sorry for the accidental repeat chapter. Should be fixed. Stay tuned for Round 3 of the Frieza Games!_


	18. Round Three: Looming Doom

_Aw Yea! The Space Pirates and S-class heroes are back! Now, I gotta warn you, this is shorter than some recent chapters I posted, but the content should more than make up for it :D. I would just like to say again that I really appreciate all of your support; my view rate hit 50,000, and that's only because you guys followed me and gave me the passion to write these chapters. I'd like to give a particular shoutout to NeoNazo, who actually helped me come up with some ideas for this chapter; really helped, so thanks man! Now lets cut the chat and watch the third round go down!_

* * *

Puri-Puri-Prisoner jumped up from the ground onto the platform, causing slight vibrations in the stone tiles.

"So, someone who dares challenge the awesome power of Recoome? I applaud your courage, good sir."

"Well, when I see a handsome fighter, I simply can't help myself. And you seem to be a cut above the rest in terms of showmanship."

Zarbon took detailed observations of this newcomer in his head, and he believed he came up with an answer for all of his odd mannerisms. "Uh, my Lord, I am rather sure that fighter is homosexual," whispered Zarbon into Lord Frieza's ear.

Frieza instantly closed his eyes and shook his head in disagreement. "Nope. No way."

Zarbon gave his master a questionable look. "Uh, I really think he is. His mannerisms, his voice, and I saw he was angry whenever you or the other earthling made one of those sexual jokes. I am quite sure he is homosexual."

"Yea, that's what I thought about you and the Ginyu's, and look how that turned out," replied Frieza with an annoyed tone of voice.

"But, my Lord..."

"Alright, you know what?! I CAN'T DEAL WITH THIS ANYMORE! IT'S LIKE A LITERAL MIND FUCK!" Lord Frieza stood up in his chair and screamed at the top of his lungs, "OK STOP!" This sudden yell brought the two fighter's attention away from each other and onto Frieza. "I WANT TO CLEAR THIS UP RIGHT NOW! WHOEVER IS HOMOSEXUAL, PLEASE RAISE YOUR HAND! DON'T BE SHY, JUST GET OUT OF THE CLOSET AND FESS UP!"

Puri-Puri-Prisoner's hand rose up, while everyone else was looking out into the sky, clearly uncomfortable with the question that was asked. But then, Frieza noticed a hand perching up from just above the edge of the arena. "Who is that? I can't see your face. Show yourself!"

His head was pulled up, and revealed Sweet Mask, with Metal Bat holding his hand up and snickering like the immature teenager he was.

"METAL BAT!" Bang swatted Bad's hand away from Sweet Mask's unconscious body. "This is serious! Enough with your shenanigans and derogatory jokes!"

"Alright alright! I was just having some fun. It's been so boring..." Metal Bat grumbled to himself and stuffed his hand inside his pocket.

Lord Frieza huffed. "Alright! I just wanted to make sure I wasn't balling it again."

"Perfectly understandable, my lord."

"Ok then..." said Puri-Puri-Prisoner. "Shall we continue."

"Of course. But before we begin, what is your name?"

"Puri-Puri-Prisoner."

"I see. Very exotic. Now, let Recoome ask: exactly why did you choose to fight Recoome?"

"Why, you ask? Hmm. It's like I said before; you, alongside the other one that defeated Sweet Mask, were the only ones that caught my eye. Whenever I see a handsome man, I just can't help myself. It's actually how I ended up in jail."

"A gay hero, in jail? You must have had prisoners lining up by cell number for their daily hole inspections, if you know what I mean."

"Very funny, and while I did manage to get to peek through a hole or two, everything was consensual."

"Recoome sees. Well then, enough chit-chat!" Recoome flexed his muscles, bent his knees, and tightened his biceps while keeping his arms up in the air. "Now, before we begin our match, I'm obligated to inform you that you're dealing with the Five Time Champion!"

Puri-Puri-Prisoner shot Recoome a confused look. "Champion of what?"

"Wrestlemania!" Recoome pointed at his opponent and began shouting,"Puri-Puri-Prisoner! You talk about your life as a prison rapist and how your sexual encounters were "consensual", but whether or not that's true, that doesn't mean a goddamn thing to this man! BECAUSE THE NAME'S RECOOME! IT RHYMES WITH DOOM! AND YOUR HOLES ARE GONNA BE HURTING... ALL... TOO... SOOOOOOOOOOOOOOON!"

Puri-Puri-Prisoner stood silent, yet his face was relaxed and one could tell the S-class hero was quite amused by the loud and game-show-host attitude he displayed in his presentation. "Very well then, Recoome. I like your flamboyant attitude, so I'll play along with whatever little wrestling persona you've developed for yourself."

Puri-Puri-Prisoner began flexing his muscles similar to Recoome, and started doing poses in the process. "I, Puri-Puri-Prisoner, have had many unsavory moments of defeat at the hands of monsters more powerful than I. I might be at the lowest level of S-class, and I may have had my moments of weakness that got me sent to a warm bunk and three meals a day, but that matters not at this moment! Today, I will prove my worth as an S-class hero!" Puri-Puri-Prisoner pointed at Recoome and scrunched his eyebrows. "So I, Puri-Puri-Prisoner, the angel of the depths, will send YOU to YOUR DOOM! ALL! TOO! SOON!"

Recoome gave Puri-Puri-Prisoner a teeth-filled smile. "Finally! Someone who gets it! That's what Recoome likes to hear! This will truly be the pinnacle match of the Friezamania!"

"Enough talk!" shouted Lord Frieza. "Let the third round commence!"

"Alright! Recoome will start the round with a Recoome Elbow!" Recoome sprinted up to Puri-Puri-Prisoner, and elbowed the S-class hero in the face. Puri-Puri-Prisoner staggered back, clutching his face in pain. "Come on! Don't tell me after all that monologuing, Puri-Puri-Prisoner can't even stand up to a Recoome Elbow!"

"Not even close!" Puri-Puri-Prisoner quickly sprinted up to Recoome and punched him hard in the face. "Angel Punch!" Refusing to let him recover, he came up to Recoome and launched a powerful right jab. The force of the blow sent Recoome staggering back a few feet, with his head facing the ground. Puri-Puri-Prisoner smiled to himself. 'Good. At least I was able to deal some damage to him.' But his smile faltered when he saw Recoome with a smile of his own. "Nice attempt. But Recoome's not gonna go down with attacks as weak as that."

"This isn't good." Puri-Puri-Prisoner touched the tip of his nose, and grimaced at what he saw. Blood was streaming down his nostril; this was a mirror reflection of his battle with the Deep Sea King. No, Recoome was even stronger than the Deep Sea King. And if what he saw in this mirror wasn't a facade, then Puri-Puri-Prisoner wasn't going to last much longer. So in order to stay on top in this fight, he was going to have to come up with a very good strategy to play on Recoome's weakness. But he couldn't even land a proper blow in this form, so there was his only choice; Angel Style, here he came.

"Did Recoome knock a circuit loose in you already? Why are you staring out into the stars like that?"

Puri-Puri-Prisoner turned back to Recoome, his face still confident and determined. "Recoome, you're about to see stars illuminating the battlefield. Ready? Transform!" Puri-Puri-Prisoner's body began to illuminate with a light purple hue; his skin went from a pale white color to a rainbow symposium of colors. But as quickly as this colorful light came, it vanished. What came next was all of Puri-Puri-Prisoner's clothing ripped off of his body, the sheer size increase of the S-class hero's muscles too big for them to handle. "PURI-PURI-PRISONER ANGEL STYLE!" Puri-Puri-Prisoner began posing, stretching his body parts and flexing his arm muscles in the process. "My Angel Style enhances my fighting strength to amazing heights! And I've learned a few lessons in these past few weeks, and not only that, but I've done some seriously intense training in preparation for the arrival of your boss, so beating me won't be as easy as you might think."

"Interesting. This will certainly bring Recoome some more entertainment. And Recoome has to say, nice."

Puri-Puri-Prisoner took a second to realize what he meant, and when he did, he let out a sly smirk. "Thank you."

"Not that I swing for the other side, but yours is too big to go un-complimented. Now then, let us resume our battle!"

Puri-Puri-Prisoner launched himself at Recoome and jabbed him in the gut. Recoome, however, managed to block Puri-Puri-Prisoner's attack and threw a right hook to the S-class hero's head. But before Recoome's fist could make it, Puri-Puri-Prisoner kicked him hard in the stomach and hit him again with a powerful left side kick. Puri-Puri-Prisoner followed up with his left kick, and struck with his signature attack. "Dark Angel Flash!" Black wings appeared behind Puri-Puri-Prisoner, and the S-class hero bombed Recoome with a barrage of punches with intent to kill. Recoome's feet were hammered into the ground, and as he was propelled back, the tiles on the ground began to rupture and crack.

Recoome licked the edge of his mouth, and became infuriated with what he tasted: his own blood. "Recoome's blood is starting to boil! You asked for this!" Recoome flew toward the S-class hero and attacked with a stream of kicks. Puri-Puri-Prisoner was able to match each of his attacks, albeit some nominal pain with every attack. Recoome briefly stopped his punches, then twirled himself around. Puri-Puri-Prisoner realized what he was trying to do: he was trying to gain momentum through his spinning like a dancer, or even a ballerina. Once Recoome finished spinning around multiple times, he swung his leg to where Puri-Puri-Prisoner was standing. But Recoome quickly realized that Puri-Puri-Prisoner had disappeared from his line of sight. The S-class hero reappeared in his line of sight and kicked him in his jaw.

"Angel Kick!"

Recoome let out a groan. But sadly, Puri-Puri-Prisoner's kick wasn't strong enough to faze Recoome completely, and he retaliated with a strong uppercut into Puri-Puri-Prisoner's stomach. The force from both fighter's attacks created small shockwaves that managed to ruffle up the hair of the heroes who were spectating. Both fighters were pushed back a few feet, the air of hostility only heightened through these blows.

Garou could tell the intensity at which Puri-Puri-Prisoner was fighting at. Recoome was certainly a better fighter than the short one, and he could see his movements were faster than the first contestant. Right now, Puri-Puri-Prisoner looked like he was at a severe disadvantage, and unless he was able to expose Recoome's weakness, Puri-Puri-Prisoner's hole was already dug.

* * *

Nappa's focus was split between trying to track the insane power that was sprinting further away from him, who he assumed was Saitama's energy, and the big collection of energy levels that were all gathered around Frieza and his cohorts. When he felt 5 power levels coming up from space, it didn't take a genius for him to put two and two together. But he'd never expected Frieza AND the Ginyus to arrive here all at once; looks like Frieza was pulling out all the stops for this jam in his empire. He'd felt some power levels spike, then suddenly crash in less than a minute, so he guessed there were some sort of 1v1 duels or matches going on, and whoever lost would end up paying the ultimate price: their pride.

Nappa had to find out what was really going on. First, he'd strangle Vegeta to death. Then, he'd explain the situation on why he did that to Frieza, and assuming Frieza was the cold, calculating, egotistical reptile who only viewed his soldiers as commodities, he'd take Nappa back with open arms. He hoped.

"Hey Nappa." Sonic broke through Nappa's train of thought. "I gotta ask you something."

"Ok... What?"

"How were you able to use all of those supernatural abilities? Like flying, being able to create an aura around your body that shook the ground around me, and create those energy blasts?"

"Ok two things." Nappa swung his body around to face Sonic. "One, why in the hell would I tell you how to do that, and two, why in the hell do you want to know?"

"You don't understand..." Sonic ran his hands through his hair and turned his back to Nappa. What had gotten into him? Ever since Nappa had given him that courtesy of respect, Sonic began tossing and turning in his bed with a new feeling that he couldn't quite describe. His defeat by Saitama's hands had made him feel inferior in every possible way, and right now, the only who could comprehend what he was going through was the very guy who defeated him.

"You understand what I'm feeling after being defeated by Saitama, and you understand that I am sacrificing a part of my pride by asking you to teach me what you know about your superpowers. I wouldn't be asking you such a thing if I knew any other way, but I don't have any other way. All the training I've done, every time I am defeated and start a new regiment, I feel the growth in strength is less and less. It's as if I've reached the limit of my strength and the knowledge on how to get any stronger, and at my current strength, I'm still not nearly strong enough to confront Saitama once again. I'm asking you, from one warrior to another, can you help me to become stronger?"

Sonic expected Nappa to throw another vociferous and insulting comment for exposing his inner insecurity like this, but the room was filled with nothing but silence. When Sonic rolled back to face Nappa, Nappa's mouth was just a straight line. His eyes were blank, his hands were on the floor, and his face showed no sign of anger or condescension. It was almost like he felt... compassion. Compassion for Sonic's internal turmoil and struggle because he had seen it somewhere in another young, ill-mannered fighter before who'd never had the guts to speak up about how he felt.

Sonic felt like he could have stayed that way forever, until Nappa finally spoke. "You might be a speedy prick, but I have to admit, you surprised me. I figure teaching you a thing or two won't be too bad. And besides, even if you knew how to use your energy, you'd still be totally screwed against me."

Sonic's eyes widened. "Wait, so is that a yes?"

Nappa slapped his hand to the floor. "Get your ass down here, you punk-ass bitch!"

"Yes! Soon, Saitama's bald head will be mine!"

* * *

The battle between Recoome and Puri-Puri-Prisoner was still going on, and the heat was only getting more intense.

Puri-Puri-Prisoner kneed Recoome in the stomach, which sent him flying into the sky. But quickly recovering, Recoome struck a pose while midair and shouted,

"Recoome Renegade Bomber!" From Recoome fired a consecutive series of purple energy blasts. Puri-Puri-Prisoner let out a slight gasp, and swiftly jumped and ran across the stadium in an effort to confuse Recoome and make it more difficult to predict where he would be. Recoome laughed in delight while he watched Puri-Puri-Prisoner running from his attacks like a weakling. Then, for a brief moment, Puri-Puri-Prisoner disappeared from his line of sight.

"Nice try, Puri-Puri." Recoome grabbed Puri-Puri-Prisoner, who had unsuccessfully attempted to sneak behind Recoome while he was distracted with his Renegade Bomber, and grabbed him by the waist. "But your stealth is nowhere near Recoome's!" Recoome flew down to the ground, and with all of his might, slammed Puri-Puri-Prisoner to the ground. Fragments of stone and huge dust winds formed at the impact of the fall, spreading all across the stadium and into the eyes of the spectators.

"That was a doozy, mate," said Jeice.

"That's gonna leave a mark in the morning," added Burter.

"If he even gets to see another morning," said Guldo.

"Damn straight!" shouted Burter in response.

The smoke began to clear, and the heroes waited in nervous anticipation to see how bad Puri-Puri-Prisoner was damaged. But they didn't even need to wait for the smoke, as Puri-Puri-Prisoner suddenly jumped out from the point of impact and onto the hero's side of the arena.

"Puri! Are you alright man?" shouted Superalloy Darkshine.

"He's got me in a pinch, Darky." All of the heroes could see from his heavy breathing and the many wounds on his body that he was telling the truth. "I'm not sure if I can win this one."

"I got an idea for you," said Metal Bat.

"Oh? And what might that be?" replied Puri-Puri-Prisoner with an aggravated tone.

"Use your ball and chain from your prison. You've still got it attached to your leg."

Puri-Puri-Prisoner looked down, and sure enough, his ball and chain was laying on the ground. Puri-Puri-Prisoner grabbed the handle of the ball & chain, and snapped it in two.

"Hmm... I'm not accustomed to using a weapon, but given how things are going right now, I don't think I have much of a choice." The S-class hero began spinning the weapon in a circular motion, testing it and swinging it repeatedly to test its mobility. "It's worth a shot."

Meanwhile, Recoome was searching for Puri-Puri-Prisoner through the wall of dust. "Where did you go, Puri-Puri?! You can't run from Recoome!"

"Who said I was running?"

"Huh?"

Before Recoome had the chance to look up, he was quickly nailed across the face by an iron ball. Recoome staggered back. He quickly ran his tongue through his mouth to see if his teeth were still there, and thankfully they were.

"That's cheating! You can't use weapons!"

"Oh, and it's fair that you can fly and use energy attacks that could wipe a hero more powerful with a single blast?"

"You can't do that?"

"No, only espers and some monsters can perform such feats."

"You know, he makes a valid point." The dust finally cleared, and the spectators were able to view what just happened, with Frieza chiming in when he heard this argument. "And I especially love how this is coming from the one who snuck onto the arena while his teammates were trying to decide who would go next."

"Yea, ya bloke!"

"I think that just levels the playing field, so suck it up Recoome," shouted Ginyu.

"Alright FIIIINNNNNNEEEEE!" Recoome bounded towards Puri-Puri-Prisoner, but the hero had expected this; just as his fist was about to connect with his opponent's face, Puri-Puri-Prisoner bent downward, and his body was right above him. Puri-Puri-Prisoner swung his iron ball into Recoome's danger zone.

"OOOOOOOOOOOOOOHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHWWWWWWWWWWWWW! WWWWWWWWWWHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHYYYYYYYYYYYY?!"

The pain was like nothing Recoome had ever felt in his life. Once everybody got the small picture, they all gasped and squinted their eyes, letting gasps and ohs of pity and disgust.

"That was overboard!" shouted Jeice.

"Not cool!" yelled Burter, followed by several more insults by the Ginyu's.

"It wasn't intentional! I meant to hit his stomach! Either way, he had it coming!"

Recoome was on the ground, writhing and squealing and holding his cojones like his life depended on it. Puri-Puri-Prisoner stood above Recoome, watching this display of pain. Then, in an uncharacteristic move, he kicked Recoome in the stomach which sent him a couple of feet up into the air. "Sorry, but I'm here to win. And while the loss of your boyhood is tragic, it's not like there was much to lose any way."

Puri-Puri-Prisoner continued his assault. To torment him even more, the S-class hero pummeled him with his iron ball, swinging away at his arms, his legs, his back, basically every part of his body that could be hit was being hit by this iron ball of death. Puri-Puri-Prisoner was beaming. He had to admit, Metal Bat's idea wasn't all that bad; he might actually use this as a permanent weapon.

Recoome's body then plopped down back onto the arena. Puri-Puri-Prisoner landed on the opposite side of the small crater with a thud, just about 20 feet away from Recoome. "Puri-Puri-Prisoner's Dark Iron Angel Style is my best style yet!"

Recoome's fingers began to twitch, and he slowly began to push himself off of the ground. "He can still stand? With such large muscles as those, I can see why," said Darkshine to nobody in particular.

"How dare you..." Recoome was looking at the ground, but Puri-Puri-Prisoner could hear from his voice the pure anger coursing through him. "Recoome shows you respect, and you go so low as to take Recoome's Crown Jewels and smash them up into little pieces. You... you bastard..." On cue, Recoome began to scream, a purple aura enveloping him as he powered up to his maximum state. "THAT'S IT! Recoome has had enough!" Recoome bent his knees and balled his hands into fists. Puri-Puri-Prisoner didn't like what was going on. "Puri-Puri-Prisoner, feel the strength of the Recoome Ultra Fighting Miracle-"

But before he finished, Recoome used his instantaneous movement, and Puri-Puri-Prisoner gasped when Recoome appeared right in front of him.

"PUNCH!"

With his entire body illuminating with a bright purple glow, Recoome landed his ultimate attack with a right uppercut, driving into Puri-Puri-Prisoner's stomach.

The S-class hero was sent several hundred feet into the air, flipped in the air about 300 times, and when he finally came back on the ground, Puri-Puri-Prisoner landed on his face, cracking the tiles.

"Oh, Recoome forgot one more thing." Recoome craned his leg back, and drove his foot straight into Puri-Puri-Prisoner's nutsack, eliciting another round of shock gasps and hums of pity.

"It doesn't feel too good, does it?!" Puri-Puri-Prisoner gave no response. "Recoome is done with you, Puri-Puri-Prisoner." He turned his back to the prisoner, but he gave one final look at his opponent, and spit on his naked body.

His teammates once again began whooping, cheering, and applauding Recoome as he stood on the edge of the stage, taking in the glory of his victory.

"Good job buddy!" shouted Guldo.

"Recoome told you he would win it for you, Guldo!" Recoome then began doing poses on the edge of the stage in a gloating fashion. "Yea! Recoome is number one! Recoome is the ultimate king of the Friezamania!"

"No, you aren't!"

Recoome's eyes widened. No... It couldn't be. Sadly, before he had the chance to turn around, he felt two feet pushing his back. "You let your guard down! Double Angel Kick!"

If Recoome had been closer into the arena, he could have been able to plant his feet into the ground or stop the momentum of the kick, but he was standing RIGHT at the edge of the arena, so sadly, Recoome could do nothing as his whole world came falling down off of his victory stand.

Recoome then landed onto the stone ground just outside of the arena, with Puri-Puri-Prisoner standing on top of his fallen body. "Now, if I recall, I believe if you are knocked out of the arena, you lose. And since my feet haven't touched the ground, that means I haven't landed out of the arena. So in that case, I'm the winner."

Recoome lifted head and quietly spoke with whatever voice he had left, "How did you survive Recoome's Ultra Fighting Miracle Punch?"

"Throughout all of my recent fights and my time in prison, if I've gained anything, it was endurance. But if it's any consolation, that hurt like hell."

"Not... funny..."

Puri-Puri-Prisoner leapt up from Recoome's body and back onto the stage, where he slowly trudged himself back onto his side, where the heroes were all waiting for them with grins on their faces. Even Garou gave a few nods of respect.

"Thank you all for your support." Puri-Puri-Prisoner reached the edge of the stage, and jumped back down to the ground where Superalloy Darkshine, Bang, Bomb, and other heroes gave their claps of congratulations. However, their celebrations were halted when they noticed Puri-Puri-Prisoner suddenly started wobbling in his place.

"Are you alright man?" asked Superalloy Darkshine.

"Darky, you might not realize it, but look." Puri-Puri-Prisoner pointed at his stomach, and everyone gasped when they noticed a huge blood splotch all over his abs. "It's a miracle that I survived that. I've been toughing out the pain, but now... I need... rest..." Everyone gasped as Puri-Puri-Prisoner collapsed onto the ground. Superalloy Darkshine brought his fingers to Puri-Puri-Prisoner's throat, and let out a breath of relief when he felt a pulse. "He's fine. Just unconscious."

"He went through a hell of a beating," commented Garou. "Even though he has a perverted sense of justice, he still fought a decent battle."

On the other side, Recoome grudgingly pushed himself off of the ground and flew up to the Ginyu's, who all had disappointed looks on their faces.

"Recoome, mate, that was a pretty big let-down there. I really thought ya had it in the bag," said Jeice.

"You ruined our winning streak man," added Burter.

"Don't add any more pain than there already is," said Recoome in a weak, almost whispering voice that was devoid of passion.

"Just... stand here on the sidelines, Recoome," ordered Captain Ginyu. Not even bothering to look up, Recoome did as he was told, and kept his head and shoulders slouched in humiliating defeat.

"So, Burter, Jeice, I've already decided I'm going last, so why don't you two decide amongst yourselves who's going to be the next contestant?"

"With pleasa, cap'n."

"Rock, Paper, Scissors?" said Burter.

"Obviously," replied Jeice.

The two Ginyu's extended their hands, chanted the three words, and yelled, "Shoot!"

Alas, the winner of this mini-game wasn't the Space Australian, but the speedy-quick blue snake guy.

"Aw piss!"

Burter shouted in triumph. "Yea! The fastest guy in the universe is the contestant for round 4! But ummm... What are we gonna do about the arena?"

Burter motioned to the arena, and the other Ginyus saw his point; the arena was filled with several craters, both large and small, and dozens of white stone tiles were either shattered or missing.

"Oh, don't worry." Lord Frieza stood up from his hover chair and raised his hands. "I dabble a little in telekinesis too, you know." Frieza lifted his index finger up, and from the ground, he lifted two more boulders. In a mirror method of Tornado, he slammed the rock into the ground, cut the other boulder into several more white tiles, and smoothly placed all of the white tiles on the areas with the missing or broken tiles. "There, done and done."

"Superb job, my lord," remarked Captain Ginyu.

"Thank you, Captain Ginyu. Burter, go enjoy yourself."

"Will do, Lord Frieza!"

In less than .5 seconds, Burter appeared on the newly refurbished arena. "Since Recoome gave his nifty little intro, I figure one of my own isn't out of line. My name is Burter, and I'm the fastest guy in the universe. Any of you want to challenge that title?"

"Ok, so we've got one of these guys." All of the heroes looked to each other, and noticed the one who said it was, of course, Flashy Flash.

"Wow, it seems kinda redundant, don't you think?" said Metal Bat. "The fastest guy in the universe versus the "fastest" guy in the Hero Association?"

"You're not funny, Metal Bat." Flashy Flash vanished in an instant. The S-class hero then re-appeared, standing superbly confident against Burter. "Oh, and what's your name?"

"You can call me Flashy Flash," replied the hero.

"Seems kinda braggish, don't you think?"

"Coming from the guy who calls himself the fastest in the universe."

"Whatever..."

"Ok, now that the formalities are out of the way, let the 4th round of the Friezamania begin!"

* * *

 _Round 3 goes to the heroes, folks! I'm probably going to get alot of comments saying how it's bullshit that Puri-Puri-Prisoner won, or how he's stronger than Genos is, even though Genos gave Deep Sea King a harder time and he's higher in rankings, or how weapons can't give somebody that big of an advantage. Well, here's my reasoning:_

 _In the battle between Sonic and Deep Sea King, you saw how Sonic was only able to briefly stun Deep Sea King with his Wind Blade Kick, showing that while he was faster, he was ultimately unable to deal any damage to him. ONE confirms himself if Sonic had weapons, he would have been able to beat Dry Form Deep Sea King, showing that weapons do have an impact. I could give other examples, but I think you get the point._

 _Now, referring to Puri-Puri-Prisoner's power, in his brief scuffle with the Deep Sea King, he was able to knock the monster's jaw out of place with a single punch when he wasn't at full power, and with his Angel Rush, Deep Sea King had to keep his arms up to defend himself from the blows, and this was also while Puri-Puri-Prisoner didn't have killing intent fresh in his mind._

 _Now finally, to the people who don't like the way in which I write my story, then why are you even bothering reading the story in the first place and spending your time and effort to list the things I do wrong? There must be SOMETHING about the story that attracts you to keep on reading it and reviewing it, or else you wouldn't post multiple reviews. If you have advice, then by all means, I am open to suggestions, and you can PM me on ideas, but if you really think my writing sucks and things shouldn't be happening, then don't read it, and write your own stories to show your own writing abilities. And kakarotsanmistic_ _, I've noticed every time you review my story, your insults are shorter and shorter... what's up with that? Hmm?_

 _Oh, and one last thing: in honor of making it to 50,000 view on this story, I just started a new story named Monstrum Hominis, which is a cross-over story on One Punch Man and an anime OVA series called Hellsing Ultimate. If you haven't watched it, it has a lot of good action scenes and another awesome and overpowered protagonist. Stay tuned for Chapter 19!_


	19. Round Four: A Need For Speed

_Hey guys the 19th chapter is up! I apologize that it took me this long to update. It's just that out of all of the battles, this was the one that I was least excited about, or didn't really know how to make it amusing, since Burter by himself isn't really explored. It's only Jeice and Burter together that really makes it hilarious to watch them, and also, we don't really know too much about Flashy Flash other than the fact he's a self-righteous ass like a few other S-class heroes we know (ahem, Tornado), so it took some time to really get this together. I might make some changes in the next few days, just for you to know. Also, I've been playing a lot of super smash bros on wii u with my brother, so that's been occupying quite a lot of my time. Anyways, behold Flashy Flash vs. Burter!_

* * *

"Let the fourth round of the Friezamania begin!"

Both fighters disappeared from sight. In the arena, immensely strong bursts of air pressure formed. The spectators staggered as the air whipped their faces. It was if that the two fighters were invisible, only reappearing for brief moments at a time to clash in short and consecutive attacks.

Up in the sky, one of the Ginyu's was having just a little bit of trouble keeping up with the action. And who else but Guldo?

"Hey guys, can you keep up with the action down there?" said Guldo.

"Uh, yea," replied Jeice. "Wait, can you actually not see what's going on?!"

Guldo began to stammer, not being able to come up with an appropriate response. "Uhhh N-nn-nnn-NOO!"

The red Australian alien let out a hardy laugh. "Crikey mate! It's a bloomin miracle you managed to win against the chick!"

"Uh, of the two of us, which one of us can literally stop time whenever he wants?"

"Of the two of us, which of us can handle a gut full a piss?"

"What'd you s-"

"Stop!" Captain Ginyu made his way in between his two subordinates before things escalated even further. "Boys! Enough of this nonsensical and derogatory behavior! You're both members of the most illustrious group of fighters by the universe; there's no need to get in such a heated debacle. We're all LITERALLY on the same team here. And besides, one of your teammates is fighting right now, and I think he'd appreciate it if you actually paid attention. Guldo, did Burter bicker on and on while you were fighting, or did he cheer you on like a true member of the Ginyu Force would support their own?"

"He cheered me on," replied Guldo with a tone that sounded like a naughty chid caught red-handed by his parents.

"Then be quiet and show some respect for your teammate!"

The two soldiers straightened and straightened their arms to their sides. "Yes sir!"

"Now apologize to each other and shake hands." Guldo and Jeice shook each other's hands and gave each other solemn and understanding looks of apology. "Sorry about that, Jeice."

"Me too, Guldo."

"Good. That's the good sportsmanship I like to see. Now pay attention to the battle." With that heated debacle out of the way, they obeyed their captain, and focused their attention back on the battlefield.

Flashy Flash struck Burter with a a hard right knee to his gut. Buyer caught his knee with both of his hands, and returned the attack with a left roundhouse kick. Flashy Flash ducked his head and wiggled his way out of Burter's grasp. The two then continued to exchange a quick barrage of kicks and punches, with neither one of them giving each other an inch. After about a hundred of these swift blows, the two managed to get a final right hook onto each of their cheeks. The dual force was enough to send them back a few feet.

"Damn! You're actually not bad!" shouted Burter.

"Likewise. It's been quite some time since I've fought an opponent of such caliber," replied Flashy Flash. The hero landed a firm right kick to Burter's chest. Using Burter's chest as a launching pad, Flashy Flash bounded backward, performing lightning-quick backflips in the process. Once he reached the arena, Flashy Flash moved so fast, an image of his form was left behind. Burter smirked; what an amateur move. Burter immediately ducked, dodging the the left side kick that would have hit him square in the back.

Flashy Flash was taken aback by Burter's anticipation of his attack. "Right here!" Flashy Flash turned, and saw Burter strike him with a right elbow. Flashy Flash attempted to meet his attack with his own elbow, but he didn't have enough reaction time to properly counter, and Burter's attack overpowered his own counter in an instant. Flashy Flash was thrown to the ground, but managed to put his hands out and got himself back on his feet with a small backflip. The hero rubbed his elbow. "So you were able to see through my afterimage technique."

Burter snorted. "I know that technique all too well to be fooled by such a half-assed use of it. If that's the best you've got, you haven't got a chance in hell."

The hero met his condescending attitude with a simple smirk. "Oh, don't worry. There's still far more to come."

"Good to here."

"Now that I know my regular speed isn't enough to attain an easy victory, why don't I show you a little bit of my true speed?" Flashy Flash unsheathed his katana, the sunlight brightly reflecting off of the shiny surface of his blade. "Flowing Shadow Feet." Flashy Flash vanished from sight once again, only this time, instead of a single afterimage, multiple copies of Flashy Flash spread around Burter in a single blurry line.

From the sidelines, the heroes marveled at Flashy Flash's incredible speed and ability to produce multiple afterimages of himself. Garou, in particular, was having a hard time comprehending the hero's speed. His eyes had absolutely no grasp of where either Flashy Flash or his opponent were moving; their speed was phenomenal, and this was only while they were still warming up. If this was the power of the upper echelon of S-class, then Garou still had a lot of progress to make. Against Flashy Flash, there was no doubt in his mind that he would lose in an instant. Garou listened in to the other S-class heroes to see if they were having just as difficult a time as he was in looking at the battle or not.

"Flashy Flash certainly lives up to his name," said Bomb. "I'm surprised he's at such a low ranking in S-class with speed like this."

"Agreed." Bang looked to Atomic Samurai and Superalloy Darkshine. "What about you two? Can your eyes keep up with Flashy Flash's speed?"

"Come on, Silver Fang. Do you really have that little faith in my abilities?" said Atomic Samurai.

"You sparred with me once, Bang. You should know that these muscles give me all the speed I need."

"My apologies."

Garou's muscles tensed in frustration under his shirt. He now looked to Metal Bat to see exactly how he was handling this, and given King was the strongest man on this planet, there was no possible way he wasn't able to follow this. Likewise, the other heroes followed suit and observed Metal Bat. Metal Bat's face was scrunched; his eyes were loose and unfocused, and his lips were pursed in a slight frown.

"Yo Metal Bat. You follwin this alright?" said Superalloy Darkshine.

Metal Bat turned to his fellow S-class heroes and angrily replied, "Da-hoy! Isn't that obvious? Just focus on the battle and stop worrying about who can see what!"

"Cool, cool..."

Burter held his hands up in a defensive stance, his eyes frivolously attempting to figure out which of his afterimages was actually Flashy Flash. This was definitely a more effective use of the afterimage technique. "I'll go for... the furthest left!" Burter plunged a fist at the furthest left afterimage, but his fist went through straight clean. "Damn it!" Flashy Flash jumped up into the sky, then began a succession of multiple front flips. The move he was about to use had been one of the first moves he and Kazuki learned together as part of the 44th final graduation class of their clan; he didn't like using it because it brought up bad memories, but he couldn't deny it was useful. The hero shot himself down and struck Burter with his left leg, but the alien caught it in his hand. Flashy Flash slashed Burter's wrist, causing him to let go of his leg. Flashy Flash continued the assault and went straight behind his opponent. Burter shouted in pain when he felt the cold katana slice through his back. But Burter wouldn't let the damage be one-sided; sucking up the pain, Burter made a 180 degree turn, placed his free hand out and fired a blue energy wave. The energy wave landed a direct hit on Flashy Flash, the force of the attack sending him flying back a few dozen feet.

"Ahh!" Both fighters moaned in pain. Burter's armor managed to absorb most of the brung of the blow, but it still wasn't strong enough to protect him completely. From his lower left of his torso to the top right of his right shoulder, a huge cut from Flashy Flash's katana pierced his body. On the flip-side, Flashy Flash's upper chest armor was shattered. The bottom half of his cape was burned off by the heat from Burter's energy wave, and he felt his chest compressing around his insides. He had been reckless in his attack, arrogant that his opponent wouldn't have had enough time to properly react and counter; one more short-range blast like that, and it was bye-bye Flashy Flash.

"Alright, no more Mr. Nice Guy. Now that you've seriously pissed me off, I'm not holding back anymore. It's time to show you exactly how fast the fastest guy in the universe can go!"

"Ok, hold it, hold it." Flashy Flash dropped his katana and scrunched his shoulders. "Exactly where do you get that from that you're the fastest in the universe? And why the hell do you have to keep boasting every 5 minutes?"

Flashy Flash's candor statement was something Burter didn't expect this far into the battle. "Its just because... just because I'm fast! What the hell's your deal?"

"It's getting on my nerves. Alright, alright, lets try to argue this problem logically. That purple guy with the big horns sticking out of his head." Flashy Flash pointed to Captain Ginyu. "He's your captain, right?"

"Yea..."

"And is he more powerful than you?"

"Uh-huh..."

"And according to the laws of common sense, a higher power level means you're faster, right?"

"Well, maybe..."

"AND! AND! That small lizard guy sitting on the hover chair is your boss."

"And?"

"And that probably means he's more powerful than all of you, right?"

"Ok, well that's just not fair..."

"Yo Burter!" Up from the spectating crowd floating in the air, Guldo chimed into the conversation, stating, "If you think about it, I can technically freeze time, so that makes me faster than any-"

Before Guldo could finish his idea of reasoning, Burter rudely and angrily cut him off, screaming at him, "Ok NO NO NO! I am not slower than you, Guldo! I'm sorry, but that's where I draw the fucking line!"

"Jeez, Burter, calm down," clamored Jeice.

"No, shut up! Just shut your mouths!"

"Well, the little guy has a point there, and I think you know it..." said Flashy Flash.

Burter turned back to Flashy Flash, his teeth bared with venomous rage. "Shut your face! You shut your stupid girlish face!"

This insult angered Flashy Flash, causing the ends of his mouth to drop down. "What?"

"You heard me! I only realized like 2 minutes ago that you weren't even a girl! You don't know what it's like! Everybody on my team has something special! I don't! What am I? The big blue snake guy? That's all I got! THAT'S ALL I GOT!"

But as expected of a cold-hearted and arrogant enemy, Flashy Flash let out a condescending wolf whistle and shook his head in the same form of manner, only serving to infuriate Burter even more. "If you ran as fast as your mouth, I'd consider you the fastest fighter in the universe. In my eyes, you're just a sad excuse for a fighter."

That did it. "You... You condescending, assholic, self-righteous piece of shit... NOW YOU'VE DONE IT!" Burter's energy began glowing around his body, until in seconds, his entire body was enraptured with a bright purple aura. "You've made me very VERY VERY! MAD!"

Flashy Flash put his hands up in a defensive stance in preparation for the next attack. Burter's form speedily faded from Flashy Flash's frontal line of sight; something wasn't right. "Ah!" Even Flashy Flash's speed wasn't fast enough to properly defend himself against Burter's fist that came barreling into his face. Flashy Flash tried to strike back, but Burter was moving at such a fast velocity, he was gone before he even had the chance to counter. Flashy Flash sensed something odd with this; he could tell Burter was fighting close to his maximum speed, so where did this extra boost in speed come from? He didn't even have the time to come up with an explanation, as Burter returned and shot himself back at Flashy Flash, striking him in the back just as Flashy Flash had done to him.

"Doesn't feel too good, does it?!" yelled Burter.

"Damn it..." Flashy Flash turned around to face Burter, who was standing in a typical confident pose of crossed arms and a smirk on his face. "How were you able to gain so much speed?"

"Oh, so NOW I'm fast! Well, if you must know, when I was a little boy, my mom was the most strict yet loving mother in existence. Everyday, I had to finish all of the household chores and make dinner for the two of us, and if I was ever late in preparing dinner, my mom would slap me like you couldn't imagine. It's because of that I had to become the fastest I could be and increase my traveling speed like I never thought possible. Your hand-to-hand combat speed might be superior to mine, but in terms of raw travel speed, you're outmatched entirely. Now let's see you handle... ONE OF THESE!" Burter sped towards Flashy Flash and attacked him with a right-handed chop toward his head. Flashy Flash managed to dodge, but like before, Burter's velocity didn't allow him to slow down, and he kept on hurtling across the arena until he firmly planted his feet into the ground to stop himself in his tracks.

During this short clash, Flashy Flash assessed the situation he was in. Burter wasn't lying when he said his travel speed was superior to his own, which pissed him off to no end. It was more than the fact he was faster, but the fact that he was such a hog for the spotlight and so insecure about himself made it all the more annoying. Each of his attacks were singular, as he used his enhanced travel speed to make sure he wouldn't have enough time to counterattack. He had to find the right time to land a counterstrike that Burter wouldn't anticipate so he could land the final blow. Throughout the entire fight, he'd been observing Burter's fighting style, his preferred attacks, and the movements he made while fighting him in close combat. Soon enough, he'd find an opening that Burter wouldn't be able to defend himself from.

The ninja flew toward Burter and attempted to swing at him with his katana, but Burter dodged before he had the chance to strike. Flashy Flash began several evasive maneuvers to ensure Burter couldn't land an accurate blow on Burter. Alas, Flashy Flash couldn't properly follow Burter's form, so this forced him to be on the defensive at all times in order to compensate.

"Behind you!"

Flashy Flash swung himself around, and Burter was floating above him, two bright blue balls of energy cupped into his hands. "Azure Energy Barrage!" In a furious blitz, Burter fired a stream of energy attacks at Flashy Flash. The blonde-haired ninja dodged each of the energy balls, although each of them exploded midair, creating shockwaves that combined were throwing Flashy Flash off balance. Burter flew toward Flashy Flash and nailed him square in the stomach with a right kick. Flashy flash retaliated and swung his katana at Burter's neck, but just as the blade was about to reach its target, Burter fired another short-ranged energy wave. Flashy Flash retreated and jumped onto one of the four pillars planted in the stadium. Burter flew toward him with his right fist prepping to strike, and Flashy Flash met his fist with a left knee. The two fighters struck each other with another successive wave of punches.

Burter shone a devious smile, which made Flashy Flash stiffen in preparation for what was to come next. The blue alien pointed his index finger and middle finger and attempted to jab Flashy Flash's eyes and blind him for the rest of the fight. Alas, Flashy Flash grabbed his wrist just as his fingernails were an inch away from piercing his eyes.

"Crotch shot!" With his free hand, Burter threw his fist down at Flashy Flash's junk, but Flashy Flash had prepared himself for a dirty move like that, and met his fist with his right knee once again. "Aw nuts." Burter spun both himself and Flashy Flash midair, and once he gained enough momentum, he forcefully pushed Flashy Flash off of him and straight into the ground. Flashy Flash spun several times while he catapulted to the ground, landing softly on the stone tiles.

"You know what? I think the fastest guy IN THE GINYU FORCE has had enough with this fight. Just for you, I'm gonna finish you off with my Blue Hurricane attack! It's my ultimate technique, and together with Jeice's Red Magma, it forms the most amazing combo attack ever conceived: The Seizure Procedure!"

"Ya got that right, Burter!" shouted Jeice from the sidelines.

"Now get ready, Flashy Flash! Here comes the pain!" Around his body, a pure blue aura enveloped him, and as he powered up, he struck a signature Ginyu Force pose as a means of intimidation and showmanship.

"BLUE HURRICANE!"

Burter rushed himself toward Flashy Flash. But what Burter didn't realize was that Flashy Flash had been waiting for this moment precisely; the moment when Burter would be too caught up in his own hubris and inflated ego and simply rush at him with everything he had. Flashy Flash readied himself, his katana held in his right hand, eager to strike its victim. In a centi-second, Burter closed the distance between the two of them and lashed out.

"Flashy Slash!"

Steel and flesh clashed against each other. The spectators marveled at the intensity, the energy from both of these powerful warrior's strikes. Blue energy and yellow lightning wrapped themselves around the two insanely fast fighters, and both of them were screaming as loud as they possibly could.

"GGGGGGHHHHHHHHHAAAAAAAAAA!"

In a stunning flash of bright light and excessive energy, the stadium was lit with a blinding explosion.

* * *

Sonic was ecstatic. His feet were nervously tapping on the ground, his fingers mildly shaking his legs as he sat cross-legged on the ground. He still couldn't believe that Nappa had agreed to teach him how to use the supernatural abilities Nappa had utilized in their fight. With these secrets revealed to him, Saitama wouldn't stand a chance against him. "What's taking so long?"

"Just relax, will you?" Nappa was sitting on the ground, his back facing toward Sonic. At the moment, Nappa was attempting to psyche himself up for this crash course he was going to give Sonic. He was still contemplating whether or not this was worth the time and effort. Never in a million years would he have thought he would be TEACHING the speedy prick. He turned his head around, and was taken aback when he saw how excited he was for this; he'd never seen ANYONE this excited about anything. "Oh god, I'm already regretting this..."

He sighed, then turned himself around to face Sonic. "Alright, if I'm gonna do this, we're gonna lay down some ground rules."

Sonic shifted uncomfortably; this didn't sound good at all. "Ok..."

"Rule #1!" The authority and confidence in Nappa's voice was extremely dominant, and he felt like he was in fact sitting face-to-face with an army drill sergeant. "You will address me as Sir."

"Alright..."

"Alright WHAT!?"

Sonic groaned, and said through gritted teeth, "Alright, Sir."

"That's better. Rule #2: My word is law. You will obey all of my instructions without ANY objections whatsoever, you got that, maggot?"

"Understood, sir."

"Now, repeat after me," Nappa's stern face softened, and the authoritative tone was diluted with disdainful and arrogant banter. "I have zero talent."

The vein on Sonic's forehead bulged, and his fists were clenched as he shouted back at Nappa, "What?! No way am I saying that!"

Instead of arguing back, Nappa instead shrugged his shoulders and gave Sonic an indifferent look. "Cool!" Nappa pushed himself off of the ground, and proceeded to walk toward his bunk bed, saying, "Means less work for me. Good look fighting the bald bastard; I'll write on your epitaph, "He died like he lived: a pig."

"No no!" The ninja silently admitted defeat, slouching his whole body and closing his eyes while saying, "I have zero talent."

Hectic laughter filled the room. The saiyan general clasped his chest as he howled with delight. He took back what he said: he wouldn't trade this for the world.

"Wait, hold on." Nappa took deep breaths to calm himself down, although it took about a minute for him to finally calm himself down. "You haven't finished: "General Nappa has all of the talent."

"General Nappa has all of the talent."

"If I'm lucky, some of General Nappa's amazing talents will brush off on me."

"If I am lucky, some of General Nappa's amazing talents will brush off on me!"

"Ah-ha! That's amazing!"

"Alright Alright! It's very funny! Now can we get on with it?!"

"Fine fine. I got my fill of laughs for the day." Nappa walked back to the spot he was originally sitting at, and seated himself with his legs crossed and his hands on his laps, the stoic demeanor quickly returning as the atmosphere around the two began to fill itself with anticipation and hidden dread at the same time.

"Are you ready?" asked Nappa.

The ninja scoffed at Nappa, replying with, "I'm always ready."

"Good. Then let's begin.

"Inside of every living being, at the center of their bodies," Nappa pointed to the center of his chest as a reference point, "there is an intangible force known as ki. By drawing it out, you change this into a tangible force that you can manipulate and use outside of the body. Observe." Nappa held his palm out, and from his hand, a small bright ball of energy formed from his hand. Sonic slowly approached the ball of energy with a silent yet enthusiastic expression on his face. He never got to see the energy first-hand, as he went unconscious just before Nappa fired his ultimate energy cannon. Now that he could see just a tiny sample of this phenomenal energy, he marveled at its bright glow, the heat emanating from it, like a night light giving warmth to all those around it. "Very interesting."

Nappa cupped his palm, motioning for Sonic to move back to his upright position. "It is this internal ki that fuels all energy attacks. Even the ability of flight is just the user being propelled upward by their energy. Depending on how much energy you've built up inside you and how effective you are at honing it, the speed at which you fly and the power of your energy blasts will greatly improve."

"So how do I access it?"

"You have to imagine ki as an extension of yourself. Just as you actively command your body to walk, to breathe, to fight, you also have to command the energy in yourself and channel it to wherever you want, whether it be your hands, your feet, your mouth, even your eyes. But given your weakened state, it would be harder for you to channel your energy."

"Can I give it a shot, sir?"

"Sure." Sonic cupped his hands and did as Nappa said. In his mind, he commanded the energy to come into his palms, to come surging forth out of his body into his palms. However, no matter how hard he tried, no matter how much he forcibly demanded the energy come out of him, nothing came out of him. "It isn't working!"

"Just calm down. Like I said, it won't be as easy when you're in this weakened state. But clouding your mind with anger and frustration is just gonna make it more difficult. Imagine the energy in yourself like a river that flows throughout you, giving you the strength and speed your body needs. Right now, in order to release it, you have to empty your mind of everything; the only thing that should be on your mind is feeling that river. Can you do that?"

The black-haired ninja nodded to him. "I think I can." Sonic once again closed his eyes, except this time, he left all of his anger and frustrations behind him. "Erase all thoughts. Like a river flowing through me." These were the only thoughts running through his mind. He continued to persist and keep his mind devoid of any other thoughts, until finally, a bright blue light shined between his hands. Sonic opened his eyes, and he gasped. He had done it. He managed to unlock his inner ki!

"I'M DOING IT!"

"Good." Nappa gave Sonic a sly smirk and nodded his head in approval. "Once your body's fully operational again, this should be a breeze to master, and you'll be able to form energy attacks with the capacity of destroying entire cities."

"Are you serious?! That's amazing! There's no time to waste then! Let's take to the skies!"

Nappa's grin faded and he said, "Whoa whoa! You're way too early into training to think about learning to fly! You think that if you get on a bike, you'll be able to ride it in a day? It takes muscle memory, time for your body and mind to properly adjust and integrate your internal ki into your daily movements. Besides, in your state, you'd be faster on the ground than in the air."

Groans of annoyance filled Nappa's ears, causing him to shout, "Stop your complaining, you prick! Look, if you wanna fly, you're gonna have to get this down first! Now, before we go any further, I want you to to form a ball of energy as big as a grapefruit. Then, when you finally get that done, work on halving the time it took for you to form that energy, then work on halving THAT time, THEN make the energy ball twice as large. Do that, and then we'll talk about flying."

"Son of a..."

"What was that?!"

"Nothing."

"Nothing WHAT?!"

"Nothing, sir."

"That's better. Now if you'll excuse me, I'm gonna eat the apple you were gonna save for later."

Sonic's face twisted in rage. "LIKE HELL YOU WILL!"

In response, Nappa wagged his finger in his typical arrogant tone. "Ah ah ah! Don't you remember Rule #2?

"But-"

"But nothing! Just focus on your own thing and let me enjoy your apple."

Sonic groaned and grumbled to himself, grudgingly focusing his attention back on the atter at hand. All-the-while, Nappa was feasting himself on Sonic's apple, beaming in delight. This was officially the best prison sentence he ever served in his life.

* * *

City Z was nothing short of a ghost-town, devoid of any human life, emphasis on human. No, in this city, monsters were roaming free, wandering the empty streets, looting whatever shops that caught their eyes or foods that looked tasty. Any people that were dumb enough to stay behind were either beaten, tortured, or devoured by any monster they were unfortunate enough to cross paths with.

In a dark alleyway, a pack of monsters were reading a newspaper the humans had published for today's paper. As they read through the different subjects, their eyes caught the headline about the Monster Association and the operations throughout all 26 of the human cities.

"An entire association of monsters? Sounds neat."

"But it doesn't say the location of the headquarters..." said one of the monsters.

"True," said another monster. "But if I had to guess..." The monster averted his gaze from the paper and up to the sky. "There are a lot of strong presences that way. It's a sensation only fellow monsters can send out and feel."

"You know there are rumors that the headquarters was actually in this ghost town, how they wanted to bring about a revolution, but I never actually believed it."

"I get it now," said one of the monsters. "These attacks... they weren't just meant as a warning to a humans. They were meant as an invitation... for US!"

"Really?"

"That sounds awesome!"

"I wanna join the Monster Association!"

The horde of monsters began marching in a large group, each of them cackling in sadistic pleasure as the idea of the downfall of humanity ran through all of their minds.

"WE'RE GONNA MASSACRE ALL OF THE HEROES!"

"Not today."

Before any of the monsters even had time to register the fact they were in danger, they were all obliterated in a single punch, their guts being vaporized by the overwhelming heat from the kinetic energy built up by the hero, Saitama. All in all, about 100 monsters were left as lifeless corpses, tainting the street with their blood and intestines. Saitama thanked god that he wasn't wearing his hero suit, or else his clothes would have been stained with a bunch of random blood splotches and chunks of different internal intestines. This entire predicament was like a double edged sword for him and all the other people who had been saved by Saitama.

"Ah ha! I finally made it!" His apartment complex came into sight; he didn't even bother slowing down as he arrived at the entrance of the apartment building. Not giving a shit about the collateral damage, he bust through the front doors. As he raced up the stairs, each stair step ruptured and broke in half from the immense pressure of Saitama's feet. In less then a second, Saitama made it to his apartment, breaking through his wooden door just as he did the doors before.

"Eh, the Hero Association can pay for the bills. Now where did I put my suit..." Saitama put his temples to his head. If this took longer than a minute, Saitama would be seriously pissed. He practically tore apart his drawers trying to find his hero suit. Nothing turned up. Next, he ran into his bathroom to see if he left in the bathroom, since that was one of the most likely places he'd leave it. No such luck. "Damn it!"

Saitama exited his bathroom and scurried across his main living room. But out of the corner of his eye, he spotted something white and yellow laying on the balcony along with a few other pieces of clothes. "YES!" He forgot that Genos had left his laundry to dry, since his dryer was broken and he didn't want to waste the money to replace it. He thoroughly examined the suit to see if there were any spots that Genos had missed, and thankfully, there was nothing noticeable. "Got to hurry!"

In Saitama's mind, everybody had already evacuated the city since there were literally hundreds of monsters in the city, so that's why he didn't even bother entering the balcony to change, but instead went buck-ass nude right out in the open. At this point, he couldn't give two shits and a popsicle about anything except Frieza.

Once he was finally changed into his hero suit, he beamed with delight. "All I need to do is make up the time I lost getting here." Saitama jumped off of the balcony and onto the streets so that he wouldn't damage his apartment." Killer Move Serious Series: Serious Jump." Saitama bent his legs, and propelled himself up into the sky, cracking the street and causing it to sink into the Earth.

Saitama's heart was ablaze, and his eyes were flaming with passion. "Let's go make some history!"

* * *

The spectating fighters covered their eyes just as they had in the previous battles as the wind swept through the land yet again in the wake of yet another earth-shattering clash. The entire arena was as bright as a supernova, preventing anyone from seeing exactly what was going on.

It took about 10 seconds for the intense and lustrous energy dome to secede, and it took another 10 seconds for all of the spectators to feel it was safe enough to open their eyes.

"That was insane," said Superalloy Darkshine.

"Who do you think won?" asked King.

"The light and smoke are clearing. Take a look for yourselves."

Every single spectator waited in earnest for the revelation of who was the victor of this 4th round of the Friezamania.

"I think I see him..." said Jeice. He squinted his eyes, and behind the layer of dust, he could clearly see a form laying unconscious on the ground.

"HA! BURTER'S WON!" shouted Jeice with fanatic delight. He knew his best mate would kick that ninja's arse.

"I wouldn't be so sure," added Captain Ginyu.

"Huh?"

Captain Ginyu pointed down to show Jeice what he was talking about. Jeice squinted even harder, and let out a gasp of shock. The one laying unconscious on the ground was... Burter.

"Me... me best mate lost?" said Jeice in a tone of repudiation.

"But Jeice, Captain Ginyu, what about..." Guldo spoke in a hesitant tone and pointed to what he was seeing. The smoke cleared, and what it revealed was stupefying. Lying unconscious on the ground just a few feet away was... Flashy Flash. BOTH of them were knocked out. Across Burter's right arm, a deep cut seared through his limb. His armor was broken, his shoulder pads shattered into several different pieces and his black wristbands laid with dozens of scratches and marks. On the flip-side, Flashy Flash held in his right hand nothing but a sword handle. A foot away from his right hand, the blade of his katana was fractured beyond repair, broken into several little pieces just like Burter's shoulder pads. His hair was a mess, and his cape had been almost completely vaporized by the heat of the clash, leaving just a small rag hanging at the base of his neck.

"So... it's a tie?" asked Metal Bat.

"I guess it is," replied Bang.

"Burter..." Jeice flew down as fast as he could to his unconscious friend, forcing back a sob as he took in all of the bruises and scars on his body. He put his fingers to his neck to confirm whether the worst had happened. He sighed a breath of relief: Burter was still alive, just knocked unconscious. "Me mate. I'm sorry this had ta happen to ya. I promise, I'll avenge ya in the next round if it's the last thing I bloody do!"

He stared at Flashy Flash's unconscious body and growled in anger. Grabbing Flashy Flash by the hair, Jeice threw him to the spectating heroes who were each a little uncomfortable with the emotions Jeice was displaying.

"Captain, can ya get Burter to the healing pod?" shouted Jeice.

"Of course," replied Captain Ginyu. The captain floated down and picked up Burter's lifeless body, being careful not to touch any of his scars.

"ALRIGHT YA BASTARDS! WHO WANTS SOMA THIS AUSTRALIAN ARSE, HUH?!"

"I do!" Metal Bat speedily jumped up onto the arena, a grin on his face and his eyes burning with passionate intensity.

"It's about time I finally got to bash some skulls in."

* * *

 _Until Chapter 20, where the 5th round of the Friezamania will commence!_


	20. Round Five: Little League Sluggers

_Chapter 20 is up! I'm sorry for the late update, but I got into some old classic games in the past few weeks and I spent a lot of time playing with my brothers, so that occupied quite a bit of my time. But I still updated nonetheless. Now watch as the 5th round of the Friezamania begins!_

* * *

The 17 year old S-class hero jumped up onto the arena, his face supremely confident. Metal Bat's rambunctious and excited demeanor in preparation for this monumental threat that was coming Earth's way was palpable all throughout his time spectating, and he reveled in delight knowing that he finally had the opportunity to release some of this lively energy pent up within him. I mean, he was still in high school; his life as a boring student and a professional hero was a fine line, and stuff like this allowed him to boost his cred as an S-class hero and pump him up in the process.

"Man, you really seemed like you were tearing up looking at your friend just now. I'm touched."

"SHUT YA FACE, YA WANKER!" Jeice shot Metal Bat a look of pure contempt; he'd been waiting to put this punk ass kid in his place, and every derogatory insult he spewed only served to increase the boiling storm of anger building up inside of him. Well, after waiting 4 consecutive rounds in anxious preparation for his turn in the ring, his time had finally come, and Jeice sure as hell wasn't gonna waste a single second of it.

"God, what's up with your accent?" said Metal Bat.

"I'm from Space Australia, ya daff bastard!"

Three dots went across Metal Bat's face in an anime-style comedic fashion. "Space... Australia? So it's Australia..."

"Yes, in BLOODY space!"

"Wow... That's really something..."

"Look who's talking," shouted Frieza from up in his hover chair. "By the way, the 50's called. They want their hairstyle back!"

"You think you're real cute, making those witty insults from up high in your hover chair while you're eating bread and wine like a snooty asshat, but when I'm done with this guy, you're next!" shouted Metal Bat.

"More like if, not when," whispered Frieza to nobody in particular.

"So, I gotta ask," said Jeice. "What's the deal with that bat of yours?"

"This?" Metal Bat propped the bat up onto his shoulder. "I was a legendary baseball player when I was a kid, famous for getting home runs after every 2nd strike and coming back stronger than ever!"

"Well, I gotta say, that's quite the coincidence. When I was a tiny little bugga, I was the startin pitcha for the Galactic Little League. Crikey, it was there I made me special Crusha Ball, ma ultimate pitch! It was so fast, the buggin batta couldn't even realize the ball had even left ma hand until they heard the ball hitting the catcha's glove."

Metal Bat let out a loud hum of curiosity. "Sounds interesting..."

Jeice smirked delightfully at Metal Bat. "Oh, it is..."

"Alright, I've waited long enough." Frieza raised his hand up into the air, and shouted, "Let the 5th round of the Friezamania begin!" Frieza sliced his hand down, signifying the beginning of this very interesting battle.

"With plesa, ma Lord."

"Let's get it on, you goddamn freak!" Metal Bat pounced toward Jeice and swung his bat toward Jeice's head. Jeice ducked and punched Metal Bat square in the stomach. Metal Bat grunted in pain, but nonetheless retaliated against Jeice's attack with another swing at Jeice's ribcage. Jeice moaned in pain; what the hell was that bat made of? Even with his enhanced battle armor and coupled with the fact that the round had already just begun, the bat was still able to break through it like paper. It's not like this guy's speed was impressive: he could easily outmaneuver him if he felt like it, but he'd have to avoid close quarter combat if he wanted to keep his face intact and if he wanted to make this round last as long as the others.

Jeice leaped back from Metal Bat and fired a red energy beam. Metal Bat dodged the attack and hurdled himself toward Jeice, but Jeice flew up into the air before he had the chance to swing his bat. Jeice smiled. "Hey, ya bloke! How are ya gonna get me when I'm up here? Ya gonna try and swat me down with ya teeny tiny bat?"

"Very tempting, I gotta say," replied Metal Bat.

"Yea? Well, lets se ya mock this!" Jeice bent both of his elbows backward, and from his palms came several very small yet copious numbers of red energy beams. Metal Bat bucked his body in preparation for the energy blasts. The blasts came pelting down onto the ground like giant hailstones striking everything on the ground. Metal Bat rapidly deflected the blasts with his bat as fast as he could, with a frantic and hectic sweeping in his movements. The sheer multitude of the beams made it difficult for Metal Bat to deflect all of the tiny finger blasts, and once they finally stopped coming, Metal Bat scanned his body, and he grimaced. Across his body, around 20 tiny holes had ripped through his jacket, a few of them managing to pierce deeply enough to draw a little blood.

"That's what ya get, ya daff bastard!" shouted Jeice.

"Wait, you seriously think this is gonna keep me down?" replied Metal Bat with cockiness palpable in his voice. "I've tanked hits 100 times worse than that and still stood standing. You're gonna have to do better then that!"

"Ah, piss off, ya bloody wanker."

"If you're not gonna bring the heat, then it looks like I'm gonna have to kick this up a notch!" Metal Bat slammed his bat down onto the ground, the force from the blow so great that the stone tiles flew up from their foundation. Metal Bat raised his bat and swung, hitting the stone tiles middair. At amazing speed, the stone tiles were shot up towards Jeice. The red alien, however, did not opt to dodge, but instead, he struck each of the stone tiles as they were about to hit him. One by one, the stone tiles were shattered into dozens of tiny little stone pebbles, falling onto the ground, the multitudinous numbers of pebbles creating a tiny hill of pebbles.

"Hah! Ya fell for it!" Jeice looked down, and Metal Bat was gone. "Ah piss..." Jeice tilted his head up, and sure enough, Metal Bat had jumped up into the air, positioned just a few feet above him, with both of his elbows raised above his head with the grip of his hands firmly grasped around his bat. The 17-year old hero let out a resounding shout, and flung his bat as hard as he could, right into his head. Alas, the red alien was not deterred by this. Jeice, in a quick and desperate act to not have his face smashed, put both of his hands up to catch the bat. To both his and Metal Bat's shock, Jeice actually managed to stop the bat in its tracks. The Australian alien beamed in delight. "You ain't got nothin, bloke." Jeice spoke with a tone of confidence, but he was fighting as hard as he could not to scream at the top of his lungs. He felt his palms were already swelling, and he could already see small trickles of blood staining his gloves. But this anger only served as fuel; Jeice's eyes sharpened like daggers, and Metal Bat could hear groans of anger emanating from his opponent. "WANKER!" Jeice threw the bat downward to the ground, bringing Metal Bat down with it due to his iron grip on the bat. Jeice propelled himself downward to meet Metal Bat's fiery gaze. Jeice's gaze was enthralled in flames as well; when their eyes met, a fiery storm bellowing and consuming the entire field with its intensity. With a silent and swift movement, Jeice extended his right arm out to his side. Metal Bat gave him a confused look, but the confused look was instantly replaced with what he saw next: from Jeice's hand, a red blade of energy took form, its crimson glow shining brightly even in the sunny day. Both pride and a new change in tactics was what made Jeice use his energy blade. If he was able to block all of Metal Bat's attacks with his energy blade, it wouldn't take long before Jeice would find an opening and finish this guy once and for all. All he'd need to do was be careful, and he'd be fine.

"So I guess you've finally decided to step up to the plate?"

"Ya bloomin right. I didn't wanna use this, since it's the special move of that freaking amateur Salza! Bloomin' arse." Jeice bent his knees and shot Metal Bat a fiery and passionate gaze of fury. "Now you'll get ta see the true blue power of the Ginyu Force's Second-in-Command!"

"That's what I like to here! BRING IT ON!" The two opponents sprinted toward each other, steel and energy clashing once again.

* * *

The flames of destruction continued to run rampant throughout the cities. Men, women, and children of all cities were scared beyond what their emotional tolerance could take. Bereft of almost any light or hope that heroes could rescue them, many citizens could only wait as the monsters attacking would eventually find them and do away with them. Some few fortunate citizens might have had the good fortune of being met by some B-class and C-class heroes, even a few A-class heroes if the situation could allow, but even the heroes of the Hero Association couldn't fend off against the demon-level monsters, for the sad reality was that more than half of the heroes were basically civilians themselves. 20 C-class heroes couldn't entertain a demon level monster.

But for a select few citizens who had the extreme luck and privilege of being served by the finest heroes the Hero Association had to offer, they could rest easy and go about their regular business, because they knew that these heroes would protect them no matter what kind of monsters would run rampant in their cities. In the most attacked city on the planet, 30 monsters of all shapes and sizes, with fangs as long as bananas, claws as sharp as swords, and speeds that rivaled a speeding train, were all swarming in droves to take out the protector of Q-city, the guard dog of his hometown, the S-class hero Watchdog Man. But shockingly, stupefyingly, despite all 30 monsters attacking at the same time, Watchdog Man pounced on them and did his act. With little more than pounding on the monster's bodies, the monster's guts spilled out. This pattern continued in a consecutive pattern, until in less than a minute, all 30 monsters had been taken care of. Watchdog Man scratched his ear with his hind leg like the dog he acted as, standing over the huge pile of dead bodies he had just finished eliminating.

All around him, the citizens cheered him on, taking pictures, marveling at the amazing capabilities of such an awesome hero. Because they knew as long as this hero was protecting them, Q-city was in fact the safest city on the planet.

* * *

"You call this an attack? Please!" The bodies of at least a dozen heroes lied on the ground, shaking and convulsing. On all of their bodies, there were puncture holes, with yellow drops of ooze leaking out, mixing with the crimson blood to make a disgusting orange mixture that stained the roads. Standing over them was the monstrous, cold-blooded beast preying over the paralyzed heroes. This monster was a giant female snake, with the upper body of a human, and everything downward being the body of a serpent. Her hair wasn't hair at all, but instead multiple snakes with yellow eyes. The snake cackled in delight. "I am Eyesight! My poisons are no match for even the strongest of monsters! What makes you think that you tiny humans have even a slimmer of a chance of beating me?"

There were only a few heroes that were still standing to combat the monster standing before them: Darkness Blade, Golden Ball, and Spring Mustachio. They had all tried their most elite attacks, but all they had managed to do was piss this snake off. The only reason they hadn't been bitten too was because they'd been fast enough, but primarily because she hadn't targeted them. Until now.

"What do we do?" said Spring Mustachio.

"Well, in a lame man's terms, we're fucked," replied Golden Ball.

"Well said," replied Eyesight in a sadistic tone. But wait. As a snake-based monster, she had the unique ability to sense the heat signature of all living beings, and at the moment, she senses a heat signature coming straight for her. "That heat. It's human, but how is it so big..."

From the wall, the S-class hero Pig God burst forth in all of his obese glory, looking a little worn out from all the monsters he had to fight. The A and B-class heroes all took a breath of relief. An S-class hero. It looks like the heroes had been saved.

"Hey you guys. I came to help."

"But why'd you come through the wall," said Darkness Blade. "Not that I'm not grateful for your arrival."

"I chose the shortest route form the noises I was hearing. But man, that kinda tired me out. I'm pretty hungry too..."

All of the snakes on Eyesight's head lunged for the S-class hero. "Eating a guy with all that sweat is disgusting! Guess I'll have to settle on poisoning you. Now DROP DEAD, FATASS!"

But Eyesight's confident demeanor quickly changed to confusion when he saw that this opponent didn't even flinch when her multiple snakes bit him. "What in the name of..."

Before she had the chance to comprehend how very, very thick the layers of fat shielding Pig God were, the S-class hero grabbed Eyesight and shoved her inside his mouth. Her screams were muffled by Pig God's mouth, but once the rest of Eyesight's body followed, the screams quickly died out as stomach acids dissolved the monster in seconds.

The three spectating heroes stood in astonishment, stupefied that such a powerful monster could be taken out so easily. "Wow..."

"Did he just..." said Golden Ball

"Yes he did," replied Spring Mustachio.

"Wait!" Darkness Blade's face lit up in concern. "What about her poisons?" The other two heroes mimicked Darkness Blade's worried face, but they all soon stopped once they realized that nothing was happening to Pig God. "Meh, it was alright food. My stomach and liver can metabolize any kinds of poison, so don't worry about it. All I gotta do is move around is all." Pig God looked up, and on the peek of the horizon, he could see more monsters storming through the city, spreading chaos per usual.

"Well, I'm gonna go deal with any other monsters I see. You guys all good?"

The heroes gave stunned and silent nods as their only response. "Make sure that the other heroes get to a hospital."

"Uh-huh," was all the heroes could say.

"Well then, I'm off." And with that, the S-class hero wadded off to live up to his heroic title as Pig God.

In a soft voice, Darkness Blade said, "That's an S-class Hero for you."

* * *

Two cities, in W-city, the city's protector, Heavy Kong, laid injured and defeated by, in an ironic touch, Marshall Gorilla. The monster was walking with an aggravated pacing in his steps and a cigar in his mouth, fuming to himself about the pathetically meek level he was categorized into by the Hero Association and taunting for any heroes to come out and face him.

"What the hell's goin on here? Why hasn't a single hero come out to fight me? What's the matter? Ya all ran home to your mommas? Come on! It's the mighty Marshall Gorilla, the one who took out this city's pathetic excuse of a hero named Heavy Kong! COME AT ME!"

But what this primitive primate failed to realize was that a hero was in fact planning to fight him at that very moment. It was an S-class hero, in fact, and the only mutant to ever join the Hero Association: Zombieman. Hiding behind the corner of a building, Zombieman was carefully evaluating and observing this mysterious being. 'It seems like this guy's gotten a bit too full of himself after beating an A-class hero. If he keeps on rambling like this, we might even be lucky enough to smoke out his nest of monsters...' thought Zombieman.

"EH?" The ends of Marshall Gorilla's mouth slightly curved up when he saw a man with a white sweater and white sweat pants walking calmly through the street. "Finally! A guy that looks ripped. He's walking around town like its a stroll in the park... If it's a civilian, he's got some real balls."

"Hey you!" Marshall Gorilla shouted out to this stranger. "Are yer a pro hero! Look at me!"

Zombieman's eyes widened. "Oh fuck. He's about to assault a civilian. Change of plans." Zombieman began sprinting while reaching his right hand into his coat pocket to draw his weapon. 'It's a pain in the ass, but I have to bring him alive and force him spill the beans about what he knows..."

"Yes?" Several meters away, the unknown civilian turned to meet Marshall Gorilla's eyes, and when he did, Marshall Gorilla gasped. "Wad dafuck? A gorilla?!"

"Aren't you a gorilla yourself?" Marshall Gorilla was a little slow to respond. When he did, his speech was a bit delayed and filled with curiosity. "what the... the hell are ya? A free monster? Never seen ya around the association. Ya aren't just aa freakish ape-like human, are ya?"

The other gorilla just looked at him as if he were babbling about nonsense. "What in the world is a "free monster"... What are you going on about?"

The S-class hero had stopped himself just quickly enough to evade being spotted, choosing instead to eavesdrop on these two individuals. 'How strange. They seem to be conversing. Are they partners? Accomplices?'

"My name is Armored Gorilla. I'm just trying to buy groceries. Although every market seems to be closed right now. Do you happen to know why?"

Marshall Gorilla's face contorted in anger. "Ya walkin' around with a wallet buying shit? Ya bowing yer head to the human system? YER A DISGRACE TO ALL GORILLA MONSTERS!"

Armored Gorilla simply stared at Marshall Gorilla with a blank face. "Wow, man... Dunno what to say..."

"If yer standing against us, YER GONNA DIE RIGHT HERE!" Marshall Gorilla grabbed his knife and swung it toward Armored Gorilla's neck.

"GORILLA STYLE KNIFE JUSTU! BANANA SLASH!" But instead of blood being drawn by the blade, all it did was shatter the moment it made contact with Armored Gorilla.

"EHHH?" Marshall Gorilla's cigar was broken in half when a metallic fist hit Marshall Gorilla square in the face, knocking him out in an instant. "You wanna cause trouble, do it somewhere else."

Zombieman viewed this very short and one-sided battle, and decided to switch up his strategy. 'Change of target. I'll follow that one.' Zombieman stealthily trailed behind Armored Gorilla, unsure of what kind of mysteries he had behind that white sweater and placid face.

But what this detective didn't realize was that the hunter was being hunted. Hovering several dozen meters in the air, two of the Frieza soldiers, Karmath and Orlen, observed the scuffle and were interested at why exactly some unknown person was tailing behind these anthropomorphic gorillas. The two hundred Frieza soldiers had decided to span out based on the areas with the highest accumulations of energy readings, with there being 26 of them overall. Kermath and Orlen had seen several different battles between monsters of all different shapes and sizes and what they presumed where the indigenous inhabitants of this planet combating them, each of them wearing different garbs. The two Frieza soldiers would have fought them, but their energy readings were too strong for both of them. But neither of them had seen a person actually trailing another.

"Karmath, what are we doing standing up and watching them?" said Orlen. Orlen was of the same race as Appule; he was a soldier with bright yellow skin and large fangs protruding out of his mouth, and combined with his blood red eyes, made him a rather scary looking individual. "Let's just go down there and kill him! His energy level is only 2,000; you've got a power level of 5,000! You could take him down no sweat!"

"Orlen, you need to calm down." Karmath was a soldier with a long face and cold, calculating eyes. He had long, spiky brown hair similar to Vegeta, and his ears were larger than most of his comrades, the ends sharply pointed. Unlike his bull-headed associate, he didn't think that just blatantly charging around and attacking whoever they saw would get him anywhere. "If this were just any regular hero vs. monster thing, then I'd probably take action, but let me ask you this: why is that man trailing them? If he's a civilian, then there's no way that he'd be following a monster, but if he was a regular hero like those others we saw before, then why would he wait to attack? He must know something that we don't. It's in our best interest to find out more about this guy."

"Why?"

Karmath turned to his partner and said, "We need this to move up in the ranks. You think we're valuable? We're practically trash. If Lord Frieza was just having a bad day, he'd kill us to vent off some steam. I should know, I've seen him do it. So unless you've got a better plan to move up in the ranks or found a way to make Lord Frieza find us worthy of something, I want to know exactly why this guy is tailing an anthropomorphic gorilla that could beat a monster in a single punch. If we're lucky, we might find something that Lord Frieza would find useful. You've got it?"

"Alright, alright..."

"Don't worry. I know a thing or two. Just stick by me, and we might be able to live full lives."

* * *

Thousands of miles away, the battle between Jeice and Metal Bat was lit with the passion expected of such flamboyant and prideful fighters like them. As each of them swung their weapons, sparks of friction came to life through every parry, every time their weapons made contact. The speed at which they were fighting and the strength each of them had only served as a catalyst to further ignite the sparks and increase the air pressure formed through the energy in every blow.

"Hey Captain, didn't Jeice say that sword technique was Salza's?" asked Guldo.

"Yes, that's correct Guldo."

"Isn't he the leader of Cooler's Armored Squadron."

"Uh-huh. I have to admit, I'm rather jealous I didn't come up with that technique myself. That smug bastard... He think's he's so cool with his Cooler Armored Squadron, that arrogant, narcissistic asshole..."

Guldo gave his captain a confused look. "Captain?"

"Oh, I'm sorry. It's just that I have a beef with Salza. We competed to see who would get to be the leader of the Armored Squadron, and in the end, I lost. So Salza got to serve under Cooler as the leader of Cooler's Armored Squadron, and I had to serve under Frieza as the leader of the Ginyu Force."

"You sound awfully disappointed by that..." Captain Ginyu's heart jumped out and into the sky when he heard Frieza's angered voice. Captain Ginyu immediately turned to his master and spoke in a fear-ridden and apologetic tone, "BUT THAT WAS BEFORE I REALIZED HOW AMAZING OF A LEADER YOU WERE! I'D TAKE YOU OVER YOUR BROTHER IN A HEARTBEAT IF I WAS FORCED TO CHOOSE AGAIN!"

Frieza gave Captain Ginyu an icy stare that lasted for what seemed like an eternity to Captain Ginyu, but Frieza finally broke the silence, only saying, "You're damn right you would." Nothing more was said, and the spectators turned their attention back to the ongoing battle.

Jeice swung his energy blade across Metal Bat's chest, but Metal Bat ducked and avoided the attack. Metal Bat swung his bat, attempting to sweep Jeice's feet with his bat, but Jeice parried his bat with his energy blade. Jeice opened up the palm of his left hand and fired a red energy blast. The energy blast hit Metal Bat in the stomach and sent him flying several feet. But Metal Bat quickly planted his feet into the ground to stop his midair flight, and once he was properly balanced, he batted the energy wave away with his bat. "Too slow!"

Metal Bat was quickly met with Jeice, who was just mere inches away from him. Jeice motioned his blade to cut off Metal Bat's head, but Metal Bat ducked again just in the nick of time. At least, that's what he thought, until he noticed a few clumps of black stuff fall onto the ground. "No..." Metal Bat touched the top of his hair, and he couldn't feel his hair was in the right place as it should have been. He looked at the reflection made by his bat, however muddled the picture was, to see how bad the damage was. When he made out the reflection, he nearly banged the bat on his forehead. The pompadour hairstyle he was accustomed to combing his hair with had been cut off; now, the entire front of his hair looked completely uneven with the length of the rest of his hair. "Ya shouldn't have done that."

Jeice slightly shuddered when he heard the dark and rancorous tone in his speech. This didn't sound good. Jeice was right. Metal Bat lunged for Jeice and began swinging with a frantic frenzy. Jeice's eyes widened as he continued to block all of Metal Bat's attacks. But as every second passed, it was becoming more and more difficult to keep up. Jeice didn't understand why this was, but the realization struck him: Metal Bat's power was increasing. He didn't understand how he was able to increase his power and speed in such a short amount of time. "RWWAHHH!" Metal Bat swung his bat with the intention of fracturing Jeice's arm, but Jeice brought up his energy blade before he had the chance. Except this time, as metal and energy heatingly collided once again, it was metal that managed to overcome energy. Jeice was sent to his right with his feet still planted in the ground. The stone tiles were split in half by Jeice's feet. Jeice planted his feet even further into the ground, and managed to stop himself in his tracks, albeit only 5 tiles away from the edge of the arena.

"That's defo gonna leave a mark."

"Defo?" questioned Metal Bat.

"You're Australian illiterate, dickless!" Jeice extended both of his hands, and now two blades were conjured up, their heated energy wrapping around Jeice's hands like warm mittens on a cold winter night.

"Double blades?"

"Well, you pushed me to this!" Jeice flew toward Metal Bat, and the exchange of parries resumed yet again. With the double blades, there was, as would be expected, a double increase of blows. Through the kinetic force of the exchange of blows, the edges of the stadium began to crumble from the amazing force and vibrations from the two baseball players. Even with Metal Bat's improving speed and strength, he was having a difficult time blocking these double blades. But that running mouth of his wasn't agreeing, and it shouted, "You're gonna have to do better than that!"

"Betta than that, ey? Well then, ha about this?!" Jeice dissipated the energy blades from both of his hands, flew up into the air, lifted his right arm up above his head, and yelled out, "Crusher Ball!" Jeice threw his hand down and from his palm, a red energy ball blasted out, flying at a great speed toward Metal Bat.

On the sidelines, Bang saw yet another one of these powerful energy blasts with the same repeated concern as before. "Metal Bat, you need to-" His older brother grabbed him firmly on the shoulder. Bang turned his head to his older brother with confusion, but when he saw Bomb's look of seriousness, Bang understood what his brother meant. "At this point, trying to convince them is a fruitless effort. They're too proud to concede and avoid such confrontations, or else they couldn't look at themselves in the mirror without feeling a pang of shame. Lets be honest, when we were younger, how many times did you charge opponents head-on without a second thought?"

Bang let out a small chuckle. "Fair point." Bang looked back up to see Metal Bat, who was bending his knees and positioning himself as if he were on home plate, anxiously waiting for the fast ball to cross his path, smirking in delight and anticipation. "But still..."

"Just relax. I could sense from this child a fervent passion. Lets just wait and see..."

The Crusher Ball was closing in, only serving to excite Metal Bat even more. "YEA! BRING IT!" Metal Bat swung as hard as he could. When the Crusher Ball made contact with the bat, the reaction was instantaneous. Like the energy clashes before, sparks of small lightning lit up around Metal Bat. Within the first few seconds of this clash, Metal Bat was pushed back, quickly realizing the mistake he made in the process. The pressure building between the bat and the ball of energy transferred to Metal Bat's fingers and spread throughout the rest of his body, causing his entire body to tense. Up in the air, Jeice laughed in delight. "Haha! Ya see? I told ya I was the true blue deal!"

Metal Bat was beginning to wish that he hadn't run his mouth off like that, because he was beginning to feel like his entire body was shaking from the pressure this Crusher Ball was creating. Metal Bat's body was beginning to vibrate as he quickly lost control of the situation. The Crusher Ball began to increase in size and ferocity, pushing Metal Bat further and further back. The heroes spectating them grew weary with concern, and even Bomb who had been confident in Metal Bat's abilities was no longer so certain Metal Bat was up to the task.

"Metal Bat! Keep it together!" shouted Superalloy Darkshine.

"GAAAAHHHH!" Metal Bat couldn't do it; he'd never seen any attack as powerful as this.

Bomb shouted to the S-class hero, "Metal Bat! Remember your sister!"

This comment caused the 17 year old to veer his head and look straight into Bomb's eyes. "What?!"

"Think about what you'll be leaving behind! Your sister's relying on you to come back to her! Are you really prepared to leave that behind?!" yelled Bomb.

"You have indomitable will! You have limitless capacity!" added Bang. "I've seen you in battle! You're a hero to the people and your sister! NOW PROVE IT!"

"You're right..." Metal Bat tightened the grasp on his bat, and his teeth clenched together as hard as they could.

"THIS... AIN'T... NOTHIN!" The willpower came bursting forth, and the hero slammed the Crusher Ball into the sky. Metal Bat looked up into the sky as the Crusher Ball made its way up into the heavens, smiling with glee and pride. "HA-HAH! HOME RUN!"

"Na," Metal Bat looked back down, and saw Jeice closed in on him at the moment he let his guard down ONCE AGAIN. "Actually, it's a foul ball, arse."

Before Metal Bat could defend himself, Jeice came in and knocked the bat out of Metal Bat's hands. Metal Bat's eyes widened like saucers, and he attempted to desperately grab his bat, but it was too late; the bat was sent tossing back into the rocky terrain, several meters outside of the boundaries of the ring. Metal Bat's smile disappeared completely, and Jeice beamed in delight. "What are ya gonna do without ya bat, huh?"

Jeice punched Metal Bat in the gut, causing him to let out an oomph of pain. Metal Bat groaned in anger, then threw his right fist to Jeice's face, but Jeice simply caught it like it was nothing, his smile still clearly palpable on his face. Jeice continued his assault with a right front kick that nailed Metal Bat in his chin, causing him to be sent flying up into the air. Jeice followed up with a right elbow that smashed Metal Bat's nose; the force of Jeice's attack caused Metal Bat to be sent into the ground, fracturing the stone tiles below and placing Metal Bat's lower torso below the ground.

"Ah, what's the matta, mate?" Jeice floated back to the ground, standing above Metal Bat's body. The Australian alien grabbed Metal Bat by the hair, and kneed him in the chest. The 17 year old S-class hero grunted in pain, and Jeice continued his ruthless assault. Jeice let go of Metal Bat's hair, then surged toward him with a barrage of strikes. Metal Bat attempted to counterattack with his own kicks and punches,, but Jeice was too fast, too strong for Metal Bat to fight without his bat. "Looks like without that little bat of your's, ya nothin but a pathetic bloke." Jeice hammered Metal Bat with a right hook across his face, as Metal Bat stammered back, now standing only 3 stone tiles away from the edge of the arena. "You're a disgrace ta all baseball playas across the universe! A real baseball playa's gotta have spunk without their baseball or their bat! And you? You ain't got nothin!" Jeice lifted Metal Bat by the collar of his shirt until he was placed directly above the edge of the arena. Metal Bat's body was now laid limp in the air. He was done for.

"And when I'm done with you, I'm gonna find that little sista of ya's and show her ya dead, lifeless body right before I stab her myself! Now isn't that grand?!" But Metal Bat gave no response. His body was still laid lifeless in midair. Jeice let out a huff of disappointment. "I'm done here." Jeice threw his right fist at Metal Bat's face, but Metal Bat caught the fist with his right hand. At first, Jeice dismissed it as a final pathetic attempt of defiance, but all of a sudden, he felt his hand being crushed. Jeice screamed out in pain. Metal Bat pushed himself back into the arena, and kept domineering over Jeice as he crushed Jeice's hand. Jeice's purple aura flashed to life around him, attempting to increase his power to escape Metal Bat's death grip. Jeice lifted his left hand, and smashed Metal Bat's right hand. But it didn't budge. Jeice gasped; what in the name of... Jeice kept on hammering Metal Bat's fist like his life depended on it, which it did, and only by the 10th strike did Metal Bat's grip loosen enough to allow Jeice to escape his steel grasp.

Jeice groaned and moaned in pain, clutching his hand and blowing on it to alleviate the pain. Jeice looked back up to Metal Bat, and when he saw the intensity in Metal Bat's eyes, he actually shivered in fear. Yes, in fear. Metal Bat's entire face was scrunched in unrelenting fury; his eyes were now fiery infernos of passion and anger that snuffed out whatever small smoldering waves of passion Jeice had before. Up with the rest of the space pirates, Guldo and Captain Ginyu gave each other nervous stares. With those small moments of eye contact, they instantly knew they were both of them were thinking the same. They both clicked their scouters on, and honed in on Metal Bat's energy reading. "Holy crap!"

"His power level... It's rising by the second..." stated Guldo.

"How is this possible?"

By the spectating heroes side, Garou said, "He pushed the family button. He shouldn't have done that."

Back on the fighting grounds, Jeice felt frustration and anger beginning to bubble up inside of him. "What, ya think just because ya hurt ma hand means that you got a chance? Yer wrong!" Jeice shouted as he forced the energy in his body to come to life, empowering him and causing the terrain around him to quake. With the new power coursing through him, Jeice launched himself toward Metal Bat and attacked with a series of punches. The Australian alien attacked with all of his might, but somehow, Metal Bad was dodging and blocking all of them, and he didn't even look fazed. "You called me a joke? You're an entire act of your own," said Metal Bat in a condescending tone. Metal Bat returned the courtesy attack with only a single left punch to Jeice's chest, and in less than a second, Jeice was propelled backward with amazing force, the shockwaves of the punch strong enough to create cracks in the stone around them.

It was Jeice who was now at the edge of the arena. Jeice's eyes were drenched with disbelief and shock. He stared at the wound inflicted by Metal Bat just now, and he let out another gasp: the strike from Metal Bat's fist had managed to pierce his armor deeper than when he struck Jeice with his bat. He touched the wound with his glove, and on contact, his blood stained his gloves. Jeice clenched his fist. "THAT'S IT! TIME FOR MY ULTIMATE TECHNIQUE!" Jeice lifted his right arm up above his head, and yelled out, "CRUSHER VOLCANO!" Instead of one Crusher Ball, multiple Crusher Balls came forth from his palm, seeking out for their target. Metal Bat wasn't intimidated: not in the slightest. Metal Bat began sprinting as fast as he could toward the giant energy balls. One by one, Metal Bat swatted them aside, each of them exploding within seconds of contact with Metal Bat's hands. From Jeice's palm, a final, much larger Crusher Ball burst out with amazing power.

"YOU'RE OUT!"

The Crusher Ball and Metal Bat struck each other, and more energy and pressure burst forth like a raging river. Jeice laughed: his victory was assured. At least, that's what he thought. The bright light from the Crusher Ball began to wane, and from split middle, Metal Bat burst forward, his eyes darkened with the pumping anger still flowing through him.

"No... How..."

"Home run, mother fucker." Metal Bat swung his right fist, hitting Jeice square in the nose. The momentum created from the blow continued onward, traveling far outside of the arena. Jeice's body was pummeled and beaten as Metal Bat's attack split through the ground, sending rocks and debris flying up into the air. The short travel finally stopped when the duo reached a very large boulder. The boulder cracked and crumbled away from the foundation, sending up dust clouds. The dust quickly cleared, and from the clouds of dust stood Metal Bat with his foot firmly planted over Jeice's chest. Metal Bat spoke, but his voice was so serious and intimidating, one would have to have steel balls not to be slightly fearful of it. "If you EVER, EVER touch my sister, I swear to god, I'll make your death as slow and as painful as I humanly can. You got that?" Jeice gave Metal Bat one final, fear-ridden look before he passed out on the ground. The 17 year old stared at his lifeless body for a very long time, the tension broiling and bubbling as the people could only wonder what Metal Bat was thinking or what he would do to Jeice. But after a long wait, Metal Bat spit on Jeice's face just as Recoome had done to Puri-Puri-Prisoner, and jumped back onto the arena.

"COME ON, CAPTAIN! YOU'RE UP NEXT!" The S-class hero shouted up to Captain Ginyu, who was staring at Metal Bat with a cold, emotionless face. "IF THAT PATHETIC EXCUSE OF A FIGHTER WAS REALLY YOU'RE SECOND-IN-COMMAND, THEN YOU DON'T STAND A CHANCE! AND I STILL WANT MY PAYBACK FOR WHEN YOU KICKED ME IN THE-" Metal Bat's sentence was abruptly cut off when he felt Captain Ginyu's fist pummel his stomach. The breath was taken right out of Metal Bat with only that single punch. Metal Bat moved his neck up to meet Captain Ginyu's eyes, and he could see his eyes were still as cold as before, his mouth pursed in a straight line. "I've had enough of your tomfoolery." Captain Ginyu struck Metal Bat across the face with his left hand, and finished his assault with a left side kick. Metal Bat was knocked backwards with nearly twice the speed and force Jeice had just been ended with, and Metal Bat was send crashing through the very boulder that Tatsumaki herself had been defeated. And just as Tatsumaki, Metal Bat landed on the ground with a singular thud.

"Guldo!"

"Yes, Captain!"

"Take Jeice to the healing pod," ordered Captain Ginyu. "I don't want him to have any permanent scars."

"Of course, Captain!" Guldo immediately did what he said, flew down to his teammate's side, and put him over his shoulders, being careful to not drop him. Captain Ginyu turned his attention back to the S-class heroes, who were all still rather shocked by the quick action taken by Captain Ginyu and the climactic ending to the spectacular 5th round of the Friezamania. "You've beaten almost my entire team with utter disgrace and malignity. That is something I will never forgive any of you for doing." Captain Ginyu pointed to the group of S-class heroes, and stated with a vociferous voice, "Now which one of you will face the illustrious Captain Ginyu?!"

The S-class heroes gave each other short and questionable glances, unsure of who wanted to have the privilege of fighting the final round. After enough glances had been exchanged, it was none other than Bang, the master of the Flowing Water Rock Smashing Fist fighting style, who stepped up to the plate. His brother grabbed his shoulder. "Are you sure about this, Bang?"

Bang nodded. "Tend to Metal Bat. Check if he's alright. I can take care of this by myself."

"I know you can." The two gave each other small smiles. Bang leapt up to the arena, which was already considerably damaged from the 5th round, and took a fighting stance.

Captain Ginyu crossed his arms and calmly stared at his opponent. "So you will be my opponent, old man?"

"I wouldn't underestimate me if I were you." Bang took a fighting pose and bent his knees. "I might be old, but I'm quite experienced. You better know what you're getting into."

"Likewise. I wasn't appointed the captain of the Ginyu Force for nothing. The only beings in this universe that have surpassed me are Lord Frieza and his brother Cooler. Now get ready. The final round is about to commence."

Frieza let out an ooh of curiosity. "This will be quite an interesting fight. Now let us commence the final round of the Friezamania!" Frieza waved his hand down, and shouted, "LET THE FINAL ROUND BEGIN!"

* * *

 _The 5th round of the Friezamania goes to Metal Bat! Until Chapter 21, where the final round of the Friezamania will begin!_


	21. Round Six: Respect your Elders

_Hey guys! Chapter 21 is finally up! Time to start the new year with an all-new chapter, don't you say? I apologize it took so long to update, but I had to study for exams, and I was also spending a lot of time on my other stories. Thankfully, this chapter is a long one, so you got plenty to read. Now enjoy the final round of the Friezamania!_

* * *

"LET THE FINAL ROUND BEGIN!"

Just as the rounds before, the two combatants disappeared in an instant. Milliseconds later, they reappeared for brief intervals, the force from their blows sending shockwaves much more powerful than any battles prior. On the sidelines, even Atomic Samurai was unable to properly track his enemies movements, with Superalloy Darkshine only able to somewhat keep up with their movements. The only ones who were able to see the battle in full clarity were Bomb and Lord Frieza himself. As Frieza had stated before, this was truly going to be the pinnacle of the Friezamania.

Besides the other heroes, Garou snarled in fury; to know that there was still such a monumental gap in strength between the old fart and himself, even after all of the heroes he had defeated during the hero hunt, was a big blow to his pride. If Garou fought the old fart now, he wouldn't stand a chance. Likewise, that captain was no pushover either, and seeing that he looked down to Frieza in such a submissive manner, Garou wasn't so sure about fighting him one-on-one.

On the battlefield, Ginyu and Bang were exchanging a series of powerful strikes with their sharpened nerves and iron fists. Thoughts were racing through both the combatants minds as the battle had commenced. For Bang, Ginyu's fists felt like iron balls pummeling against him, yet he was able to strike with such accuracy that was uncanny in most monsters he had faced. Ginyu was at least in the upper echelon of Dragon-level, that was for sure. On the other end of the thinking spectrum, Ginyu was fascinated and at the same time baffled that such an old man could possess such unbelievably strong power hidden in his punches. Not only that, but his speed was far beyond what he would have considered possible, even for Ginyu himself. Coupled with his amazing strength, Ginyu knew that this would be a difficult battle.

Captain Ginyu struck Bang with a right side kick, but Bang caught it and twirled it around, causing Captain Ginyu to spin around multiple times midair. Captain Ginyu groaned in anger, and while he was spinning, fired an consecutive barrage of energy attacks. The purple rays of energy flew out everywhere, exploding midair just seconds after being launched, destroying the stone tiles nearby and damaging the arena even more. Bang did a backflip and evaded the energy blasts. Captain Ginyu turned his body vertically and landed squarely on his feet to stop himself from spinning. The captain raised his two hands, and fired the same barrage of energy waves at his opponent. The martial artist initiated evasive maneuvers and stealthily dodged the attacks. The purple energy waves lit up the arena with a bright purple glow, forcing the spectators to shield their eyes from the light. Bang too covered his eyes from the blinding light. But that was a bad mistake on his part; almost immediately after, Bang felt a fist gutting him in the stomach. Bang was sent flying up in the air, going out of the bounds of the ring. "Hah! It's already over!" shouted Captain Ginyu.

But a master martial artist wouldn't be defeated by a technicality such as a ring-out; while he was still being propelled midair, Bang began spinning his body to change his trajectory, until he landed on one of the four pillars of the ring. The master martial artist bent his knees and body back, and sprung to Captain Ginyu, attempting to attack with a left knee. Captain Ginyu met his knee head-on, and the fighters initiated another short-range exchange of kicks and punches.

Quickly after the short barrage of blows, Ginyu managed to land a powerful right side kick that hit Bang square in the chest. The martial artist let out a minor grunt of pain. The captain followed up his attack with a right uppercut that struck Bang square in the chin, causing him to fly up a few feet into the air. Captain Ginyu jumped up to the sky, clamped both of his fists together, and swung downward at Bang. Bang was sent flying back into the ground, but just before he was about to be sent crashing into the arena, Bang put his arms out and began a series of very fluid backflips. Once Bang quickly finished the series of backflips, Bang firmly planted his feet on the ground, and sprung up to attack Ginyu with a right elbow. Captain Ginyu met his attack with his own elbow, creating a large very sharp burst of air pressure that fractured the arena below them and caused two of the pillars to crack and fall onto the ground. While they were falling to the ground, the two continued to fiercely fight each other. While midair, Ginyu chopped Bang on the side of his neck. At the same time, Bang struck Ginyu hard in the solar plexus. The two let out groans of pain, but it was obvious that Ginyu's groan was louder than Bang's.

When both of them made it to the ground, Bang swept Captain Ginyu's feet from under him, causing Ginyu to lose his footing and fall to the side. Bang clamped both of his fists together and struck Ginyu with a very quick jab. The captain barely had enough time to block the strike, and he was sent back-first into the ground, creating another large crevice in the arena.

The Captain was somewhat slow to get up, having to momentarily regain his senses. Ginyu then calmly brushed the dirt off of his armor and let out a hum of curiosity and mild surprise. "You're quite something there. Just as I thought, this wasn't going to be an easy battle."

"Likewise," replied Bang. "You're definitely not the leader of your squadron for nothing. But..." Bang crossed his arms in an utterly confident manner, staring coldly at his opponent. "In the end, it isn't enough. If this is the zenith of your powers, then this match is already over.

"Water Stream Rock Smashing Fist."

Before Captain Ginyu had the chance to retort, Bang sprinted up to Captain Ginyu and blitzed him with a series of attacks that Captain Ginyu wasn't prepared for. Yelling in rage, Captain Ginyu threw a right jab at Bang's face; Bang met his fist with his left fist, but to Ginyu's complete shock, Bang was able to nullify the force of Ginyu's punch, yet his hand continued to move across his arm and struck Ginyu in the forehead with his fingertips. The force of the attack propelled Ginyu back away from Bang. The alien rubbed his forehead and let out a slight moan. He looked back up to his opponent and stared at him with awe. His movements were so... fluid. He was able to defensively meet Ginyu's attack, yet at the same time, managed to strike Ginyu with twice the power as before.

Bang sprinted up to Captain Ginyu to follow up his attack; Captain Ginyu held his arms up to defend himself from the onslaught of blows that were about to come his way. But it wasn't enough; Captain Ginyu felt himself being batted around by Bang's fists like he was just a rag doll. It was unbelievable; even in defensive stance, this infuriating man was able to expertly strike him at his body's natural weak points. Hell, even the bones in the back of his hands were being targeted, causing him to feel pain shoot up through his hands.

Up in his hover chair, Frieza let out a hum of entertainment and mild amazement; only moments into the battle, and already Frieza could see the unbelievable talent in this liver-spotted, hunchified old man. It wasn't just his strength or his speed: it was his precision, his technique. Even from up here, Frieza witnessed the way in which the old man was able to strike Ginyu's weak spots, with his fingers no less. With that kind of precision, that old man could defeat an opponent twice as strong as him. Quite a troublesome foe indeed...

On the battleground, Captain Ginyu tried hopelessly to retaliate, but it was no use. Every time Captain Ginyu attacked him, Bang was there to neutralize and counter his attacks with twice the force. This endless barrage continued to pummel Captain Ginyu until he was standing about 2 tiles from the edge of the arena. Instinctive fearfulness overtook Captain Ginyu's heart, and before Bang managed to land the final blow, Captain Ginyu put both of his hands out and fired a blast of purple energy, which hit Bang straight in the chest, but ultimately did little damage.

The Captain was breathing heavily; his arms were at his sides, and he could see drips of blood falling on the ground stemming from his lip and streaming down his chin. If the battle kept going on like this, Ginyu would be knocked out. But he didn't know what to do! This old man's speed and reflexes were amazing, far greater than anything he'd ever faced before. He was basically done for. Unless...

The realization struck Ginyu, and the Captain cracked a very wide smile. The wide smile progressed to a low cackling, and the martial artist's nerves rattled at the sight of this. "What's so funny?" said Bang angrily.

"It's just me, but I often find humor in the oddest of places. For example, facing off against a warrior such as yourself," replied Ginyu, his confident smirk still present as he spoke.

"And what's so humorous about that?!"

"Well, I'm not sure humorous is the word. Thrilling perhaps... Yes, thrilling! That's it!" Ginyu continued to laugh to himself, causing Bang to shift uncomfortably in his place. What was he up to?

Up in the sky, Guldo and Recoome gave each other shocked looks. "Is he about to do what I think he is?" said Guldo.

"Recoome thinks so..." replied Recoome.

Captain Ginyu suddenly began to shout, the intensity of his voice increasing every second, along with his power level. All around the Captain, the ground began to violently shake, as pebbles and other debris began to float up into the air, and the very clouds themselves began to swirl in the sky. The heroes couldn't help but be shocked by the display of power demonstrated at that moment, for none of them had ever seen it before. The power to shake the earth and shift the very sky itself? That power was crazy...

Then, the heroes watched as Captain Ginyu raised his arms up to his sides and spread his legs out. Bang saw this and knew that whatever was about to come his way wasn't good. But when Bang tried to move out of the way, he couldn't. It was as if he were frozen in place, unable to even twitch his finger. The martial artist looked at Captain Ginyu and let out a groan of anger. What was all of this in preparation for?

The Captain finished his shouting, and screamed at the top of his lungs.

"CHANGE N-"

"Enough!"

Captain Ginyu immediately halted his special move when he heard that command. The other heroes didn't know why he had stopped, but they looked up, shocked to realize that it was actually Frieza who had given the command. Yes indeed, the mighty space emperor had stood up in his chair, staring down at Ginyu and Bang. Ginyu turned to his superior, not understanding what he had done wrong. "My lord?"

"I think I've had enough bread and wine now." Frieza slowly floated off of his chair and into the sky, where he gently landed on the ground and stood face-to-face with Bang, with Captain Ginyu standing just a few feet behind him. "The reason why I put an end to this duel is that the victor was already decided."

"But my body switching technique..."

"That would help some, but I can see it in his movements. I can see that both of you have around the same level of speed and power, but his fighting technique is superior in every way. Even if he were to switch bodies, that fighting style is engraved in his mind. With such a powerful technique, I believe that you would quickly lose, even in his body. No, I need to take care of this one myself."

"I understand..." Captain Ginyu bowed his head toward his master, a feeling of guilt and disappointment filling his heart knowing he had failed and knowing Lord Frieza had to step in as he did. "Is there anything else I can do, my lord?" asked Captain Ginyu with defeat and shame palpable in his voice.

"Just go back to the rest of your team and watch the spectacle that is about to unfold," replied Frieza.

"As you wish, my lord..." The defeated captain silently flew off to his two remaining subordinates, who immediately comforted him and tried to alleviate his disappointment.

"It's alright, Captain," said Guldo.

"Recoome thinks you did a real crackerjack job," added Recoome, patting him gently on the back as he did so.

Captain Ginyu let out a soft sigh. "While I appreciate your support," said Ginyu, "There's no need to sugarcoat it. He was simply too strong for me." Ginyu gently brushed their hands off of him and straightened his body to a more respectable posture. "All we can do now is witness the everlasting and unimaginable power Lord Frieza will display for us now."

Lord Frieza was quite surprised with what he'd seen from Earth's warriors. If Vegeta and Nappa had fought any of these heroes, they would have more than likely been terminated in an instant. All of the members of the Ginyu Force had fought them to a stand-still, their victories only won through cunning tactics and playing to their opponent's weaknesses.

"Well, it looks like winners of the Friezamania are the heroes!" Frieza gave a very slow round of applause, causing the heroes standing on the sidelines to growl in anger. "Give yourself a few pats on the back for that! Well done! Being able to handle all of my most elite soldiers is quite the impressive feat, and for that, I tip my horns to you. But the starting lineup is over." Although he gave no sign of anger, Bang felt a kind of chill emanating from him, causing him to tense up. "Now you've got the main event." Lord Frieza put his his hands behind his back and calmly stared at Bang, who had taken a defensive stance and was prepared for the battle that was soon to come. "I must say, you are quite strong," said Frieza. "Never, in my wildest years, would I have imagined that someone had the strength to best Captain Ginyu, and at such an old age no less." Bang gave no response.

"I want the pleasure of beating you myself."

"Very well." Bang lifted his hands up into the air and primed his fingertips for battle. "Let's begin."

"Ok. But first." Frieza clasped his hands together and sliced downward with a swift, singular motion. The arena was split in half, causing both Frieza and Bang to fall to the ground. With another swift movement, Frieza thrust his hands to their sides; the force from his strikes caused the two sides of the arena to be thrust at blinding speeds. In seconds, the huge stone halves of the arena crashed and crumpled up as they were stopped by the nearby mountain range. "I just don't feel like rebuilding the arena a second time. Besides, I like my space."

"Now can we-"

"Hold it, old fart!" Both fighters turned their heads around to see Garou staring at them with his fists clenched and his lips pursed in a tight line. Whatever doubts he had about facing Frieza before were replaced "If your sluggish memory has a hard time remembering, I believe I called fighting the bossman once the preliminary rounds were over."

Frieza let out a small chuckle of amusement. "I never imagined that there would be a fool who'd dare to challenge Frieza! I applaud your overconfidence, sir! Well, overconfidence or stupidity. Either way, I will enjoy wiping that smug smirk off of your face once you truly grasp the depths of who you are really up against."

"Well, if you think this is goin to be easy, then you're dead wrong. I am the Hero Hunter Garou! The monster who has taken on A-class and S-class heroes alike! You're just a stepping stone for me to achieve perfect evil!" Garou motioned for Bang to step aside with a sardonic flick of his wrists, to which Bang grudgingly conceded to. On the sidelines, or what used to be the sidelines of the ring, the remaining heroes greeted Bang with praise, yet they found it hard to celebrate just yet when they knew that the big bad boss was still standing right in front of them. Bomb clasped his brother's right shoulder and lightly shook it.

"You did good, brother," said Bomb.

"Appreciated," replied Bang. But Bang's attention wasn't focused on him or his brother; it was focused solely on Garou and the fight he was prepared to start. Could his disciple really handle such a threat? Bang would have to wait and see.

Garou took a fighting pose, while Frieza just kept a calm gaze with his arms still wrapped behind him.

"You're about to get a bad case of Freezer Burn."

* * *

The square holding cell was lit up in a bright glow. Sitting in the center of this room, Speed-of-Sound Sonic was having difficulty containing his glee as he watched a blue orb clasped in his hands. He had been about 20 minutes into his new energy training, and already he had managed to halve the time it took for him to conjure up this energy ball. It hadn't been easy, but he wasn't going to let a broken body hinder his fighting spirit and desire to reign supreme over Saitama. "Hah! You said that I won't be able to fly?" said Sonic to his cellmate and current mentor, who's back was hunched against the wall, his face stone cold, as if he was concentrating very hard on something. "At this rate, I'll be able to take to the skies in only a few days!"

"Uh-huh..." Nappa said nothing more, not even bothering to chastise Sonic for his arrogant demeanor. Sonic gave Nappa a questionable look. "Sir? What are you doing?"

"I'm tryin to properly sense what's going on out there."

"What are you talking about?"

This time, Nappa looked straight into Sonic's eyes and gave him his attention. "Right now, my slimy boss, Lord Frieza, and his elite squadron have arrived on this planet, and all of them have gone toe-to-toe with several fighters. I've felt a lot of very powerful energies more powerful than you and me go down, and at this moment, the captain of Frieza's elite force initiated battle and actually lost, and if that's the case, then there must be some goddamn powerful warriors on this mud-ball."

"I see..."

But suddenly, Nappa's serious tone changed into a more malevolent anger, and he let out a shout of rage, causing Sonic's energy ball to vanish and the ninja to slightly move away from Nappa. "What? What is it?!" shouted Sonic.

"I can't take all of this sitting around anymore!" replied Nappa. "I've been cooped up in here as a prisoner for days on end, unable to break free of my bonds and take my revenge on that disgrace of a saiyan prince! I am a Saiyan General! I refuse to let myself stand idly by as the tides of battle wash over me! I've had enough!"

Sonic uneasily said to Nappa, "What does that mean?"

Nappa's voice was cold yet determined when he spoke his next words, "It means that I'm busting out of here, no matter what it takes." Nappa walked to the center of the room, standing just in front of Sonic. At the center of the room, Nappa bent his knees, his white aura beginning to flicker to life, making the light from Sonic's energy ball look like a tiny flashlight in comparison. Nappa began shouting angrily as he accumulated whatever energy he had into his throat to prepare his most powerful attack.

"BREAKER CANNON!"

From his mouth, a huge burst of yellow energy spewed out. For a moment, the attack was violently pushing against the cell wall, unable to break free from the sturdy confines. But then, a crack formed. In a second, that crack became two cracks, then three, then four, and in mere seconds, the entire wall collapsed as the energy wave broke through. Nappa's Breaker Cannon then exploded in the air, illuminating the surrounding city with its momentary flash.

"A week ago, I couldn't have done that," said Nappa to nobody in particular. "I guess the rest actually did me some good. I'm feeling stronger than ever."

"You're leaving?" Sonic surprised himself with those words; they had just come out in the spur of the moment, and he hadn't thought about what he said until after he had said it. The heat rose to Sonic's cheeks from the embarrassment of such an open question and the sincerity laced in it. Nappa turned his head back to Sonic and noticed Sonic's embarrassment; the look on his face had reminded him of a time in a certain upstart prince's youth when that same expression was plastered on his face.

"Yea. But don't get any ideas, you shit-faced prick." Nappa's rude comment caused the redness in his cheeks to quickly disappear, and the two resumed eye contact with each other. "Listen to me, Sonic. If I don't return, then just use what I've taught you and hone your abilities the best you can."

"But what are you gonna do?"

Nappa turned his head away from Sonic and looked up to the sky. "I'm gonna take care of some... personal business. I need to do it alone."

Nappa didn't need to say anymore, because Sonic knew exactly what Nappa meant with just those few words. "Well then... good luck." All it was was a killer bidding a killer good luck. Nothing more, and nothing less, and both Sonic and Nappa knew it to be true. "I don't need luck."

Nappa gave Sonic a very small salute, and flew off into the sky without another word. No multitude of words could have been more significant than the look of respect both of them gave each other in those final moments, but whether or not the two warriors understood why was up to them.

* * *

"Are you seeing this?"

In the central communications and security center of the Hero Association Headquarters, one of the security officers had just witnessed on tape one of the imprisoned mysterious beings blasting the wall with a huge energy wave, then flying off into the sky. The security officer called other workers to his side just to see if they were seeing the same thing he was, and they were. Now, the officer was dialing the number to Bofoi's office as quickly as he could.

In the dark confines of Bofoi's underground laboratory, the S-class hero was working diligently alongside his brother, his assistant, and another S-class hero, Demon Cyborg, when his phone rang to life. The scientist groaned in agony. What could this be?

"Well?" asked Dr. Kuseno. "Are you going to answer it?"

"Alright, alright..." Bofoi grudgingly trotted over to his desk, picked up the phone, and angrily stated, "What is it?! I am very busy right now, and have no time to address trivial matters!"

"Metal Knight!" The voice of the caller sounded rushed and panicked. "The dragon-level mysterious being you imprisoned..."

"Yes? What about him?!"

"It... It... It..."

"What?! What is it?! Spit it out, you fool!"

"It's broken free! It blasted through its cell and flew off into the sky?!"

Bofoi couldn't help but be taken aback by this recent news. The scientist immediately hung up the phone and pulled up the security cameras on his multiple monitors, and sure enough, there was a giant hole in the cell, and one of the prisoners was absent. The other prisoner, however, hadn't taken the opportunity. Bofoi couldn't understand why, but once he took a closer look, Bofoi realized that the prisoner was limping. Then it occurred to him that he still hadn't healed from his injuries.

"What's happened?" Dr. Kuseno questioned his brother, but got no answer. The good doctor walked over to Bofoi's side to see what all the commotion was about, then noticed the missing prisoner on the screen monitor. "The prisoners broke free?" asked Dr. Kuseno.

"Yes," replied Bofoi.

"Well then, do something!"

Bofoi shook his head. "I'll send some security drones to keep an eye on that pesky ninja, but there's nothing more I can do about that other one." Bofoi typed several keys into the keyboard, then quickly paced back to resume his work as before. "Besides, we have bigger fish to fry."

Dr. Kuseno ran his hand through his hair, knowing that Bofoi was right yet feeling frustrated nonetheless, and walked back beside his brother. Child Emperor suddenly reentered the laboratory, sprinting to the sides of the two scientists in desperation and a sense of urgency. "I've finished the system check and integrating the software with the new machine."

"Good. Genos." Dr. Kuseno flicked the monitor on, and on the screen was Genos diligently working with the same frantic urgency as Child Emperor, for like the young child, Genos knew that time was of the essence. "Have you finished the data upload?!"

"I managed to start the upload, but it says it will take an hour to complete!"

"Grah! Alright, I'll meet you there. Bofoi, you and Alex finish making the required modifications to the new machine, and I'll try and see if I can speed up the data upload as quickly as I possibly can." Dr. Kuseno sprinted as quickly as he could across the room, leaving Alex and Bofoi alone.

"How much time do we think we have?" asked Bofoi.

"I'm not certain, but given how things are going..." Bofoi picked up a remote that was next to forearm and pointed it to his multiple screen monitors. The monitors flashed to life, and Alex saw several S-class heroes lying on the ground in an unconscious state. The scene shifted, and showed brief flashes of Silver Fang fighting some mutant with purple skin and big black horns sticking out the sides of his head.

"I sent a few spy drones to the site to see how the events would unfold." Child Emperor suddenly felt a fearful chill emanate from Bofoi, something Child Emperor had never seen before. "Let's just hope that our weapon will be enough."

"It will," replied Child Emperor. "It has to."

* * *

Garou lunged for Frieza, all-the-while letting out a vociferous shout. Garou began the battle with a series of short jabs, but Frieza dodged them with a relaxed stride in his movements. Garou continued his assault by punching, kicking, and elbowing Frieza as hard as he could, but for every single one of his attacks, not a single one hit home. The Space Emperor let out a laugh of condescending malice. "Hah! Is this serious?!" said Frieza. Garou swung a right jab at Frieza's face, but the breath was completely taken out of him when he felt Frieza's fist in his stomach. Garou was sent rolling and tumbling back dozens of feet, as rocks scraped his shirt and his muscles. Frieza continued his chorus of condescending laughter. "Please tell me there's more than this! After all of that big talk about being the "monster hero hunter", I expected something that would at least cause me to break a sweat. But with your speed? I wouldn't have to use even a tenth of my power to take care of you!"

The hero hunter jumped into the air and propelled himself downward to attack Frieza. "Water Stream Rock Smashing Fist!" Garou struck Frieza with his not-so-favorite fighting technique, but knew it was necessary for an opponent of such caliber. But even then, all of Garou's attacks were deflected by Frieza with only a single finger. "GRAHHHHH!" Garou added more speed and power to his strikes, with anger being his fuel, but Frieza was still giving him the look that told him this was just a joke. "My god! How did you know I was deathly allergic to tickling!" Frieza caught both of Garou's hands middair with practically nonexistent effort. Garou snarled in anger, and attempted to knee Frieza hard in the chin, but it seemed like great monsters thought alike; before Garou even had the time to move his knee more than an inch, Frieza's kneed Garou in the chin so hard, he felt like his entire jaw had been knocked loose from his head. The hero hunter staggered in a momentary daze, and he dropped his knee to the ground as he gripped his jaw to make sure he could still properly talk. All of the other heroes looked in shock. They all knew about Garou's victory over Tanktop Master, the S-class hero, and knew that he wasn't one to be easily trifled with. So how was it that Garou was being knocked around like a rag doll?

"God, this battle has lasted less than a minute, and already on your knees," said Frieza. Frieza mercilessly kicked Garou on the side of his head, causing Garou to fall completely on the ground. The hero hunter tried to push himself off of the ground, but Frieza's foot was planted firmly on Garou's back, preventing him from moving. "I've had worse times, you know? It's not often that I dirty my hands with this sort of grunt work, but there's always a certain satisfaction I get about doing it myself." Frieza grabbed Garou by the hair and held him in an upright position. "How pathetic." Frieza punched Garou in the chest, eliciting a loud yelp of pain from Garou. Frieza then formed a small ball of energy at his fingertip, and fired it at point-blank range. Garou's form was barely visible as he was sent back at astounding speed. After a short moment, the energy ball exploded, creating a cloud of dust that surrounded Garou.

Once the smoke cleared and Garou's form became visible, the heroes couldn't help but let out a gasp of shock; Garou's shirt was completely ripped apart. Blood was dripping down his arms, his legs, his chin, you name it. His left eye was no longer white, but instead, drenched in blood red, and his long silver hair was a disheveled mess. Garou's veins were popping out in unmitigated fury, his fists were clenched tightly enough to the point of breaking the skin, and his eyes were poised with rage. Less than a minute had passed, and with only four attacks, Garou already felt like he was going to pass out. This kind of strength was just... unfair. In order to create a fair world from the pure, monsterfied evil within himself, Garou would need this unfair power himself.

"How did you do it?" whispered Garou.

"What? I'm sorry, come again? I couldn't hear you over the sound of my badassery."

"I said how did you get so fucking strong?!" snarled Garou, staring straight into Frieza's eyes when he did.

The space emperor shrugged his shoulders callously. "My family line is the strongest of our race, and I am a prodigy even among my family. Someone as unimportant and weak like you couldn't understand."

Garou's teeth grinded against each other from the unbridled rage flowing through him at this lackadaisical reply. "You bastard! You think you're all high and mighty, standing up from your fancy throne and controlling everyone like puppets!" yelled Garou. "I'm trying to change the world! To eliminate the unfairness caused by heroes and their perverted sense of justice! Is this how you treat everything?!" screamed Garou. "AS A GODDAMN JOKE?!"

"Pretty much, yes. But I don't consider you a joke." This last statement took Garou by surprise. "Really?"

"Of course not. Jokes are hard and require skill."

That did it for Garou. With a blood-curdling scream, Garou channeled all of his rage, passion, and remaining energy into a single punch. Alas, to all familiar with the name of the game, the punch was nonchalantly caught by Frieza, who was still smirking in delight. "Oooh! I see you've gotten a second wind!"

Without warning, a powerful left kick hit Frieza's head, ramming him into the ground. Garou was released from Frieza's grip, and when he saw who had saved him, his lips parted into a frown. It was the old fart, along with the rest of the S-class losers who were standing right beside him. "I told you to stay out of it! This is my battle!"

"Your muscles are practically destroyed," said Superalloy Darkshine, "And it's been about a minute."

"Besides, we don't need your permission to enter a fight or not," added Atomic Samurai, "Unless you want to try and stop us." Atomic Samurai pulled out his katana and pointed it at Garou's forehead. But before he could do any more, Bang put his fingers on the blade and lowered it to the ground. "Now isn't the time for that. Bad as this might sound, we might need him. He has natural talent unlike anything I've ever seen before."

"This monster is too much for any single one of us to handle alone. We'll need all of the help we can get," said Bomb. "Or am I wrong?" While the overconfident personas they had developed would have probably jumped at the challenge to fight the God-level monster alone for the pride and fame that would come with it, they knew that what they had seen from this monster was something none of them could fight alone. No, this would have to be together. The five of them, and reluctantly, Garou. But when the five S-class heroes realized there were only four of them, they turned their heads and realized that King hadn't moved a muscle.

"King, what are you doin there? We need your first-rate muscles!" said Superalloy Darkshine.

"I cannot." The determination and resolve in his voice was palpable to the group of heroes. After a few seconds of anticipation and nominal fear, Atomic Samurai was the first to ask the obvious question. "Why?"

At Atomic Samurai's question, all of them could hear the King's engine roaring to life. "You see, when the aliens entered Earth's atmosphere, the reaction created a new compound called Engawatson. When it reacted with the bonilezane found in radiation, it causes the rare Organic Jose Phenomenon. This effect is naturally dangerous, but combined with the very high energy from Frieza, the effect is compounded many times over. If I unleashed my full power, the energy could destroy the entire planet. We're heroes; we're meant to save the world, not destroy it. I'm sorry, but I cannot do anything." The King Engine was beating louder than ever once he finished his sentence, and that was all any of the heroes needed to back off, lest they face the wrath of the strongest man on the planet.

Frieza found it hard to form a complete sentence; he listened to every single word this man, and he found it hard to distinguish whether that was complete bullshit spewing out of his mouth or if there was actually some sort of truth behind it. He thought of the possibility that this man was the warrior who defeated Vegeta and Nappa, but then he remembered Vegeta saying that the man who defeated them was bald and had a cape. After a few moments of internal thinking, he decided that once he was finished with these wannabe fighters, he would take on that man himself.

Once he was done observing King, he turned his attention back to the five fighters standing before him. "So a little five on one? Alright, I think I can manage. Sound like Cooler's birthday party at a stripper club."

All five warriors tightened their bodies and took a fighting pose. Garou absolutely detested having to work alongside the old fart, his brother, and the two other S-class heroes, but what choice did he have? It was either take all six them at once in his weakened condition, which was practically impossible, or just give up like a coward and let the heroes do all of the work. So, the hero hunter psyched himself up and stubbornly accepted the support of the heroes.

"Well, Devil of Frost, it's about time I give you a front row seat to the gun show, motherfucker!" And with that, Superalloy Darkshine was the first to attack. Frieza's eyes widened a smidge when he lost sight of Superalloy Darkshine for a brief moment. However, he quickly regained sight of him and blocked the hero's punch. Superalloy Darkshine continued with a quick series of punches that were strong enough to fracture the ground behind Frieza from the great air pressure formed from his punches. While Superalloy Darkshine continued to punch him, Atomic Samurai sped up to Superalloy Darkshine's side and diligently slashed his sword, but somehow, Frieza was able to expertly dodge both string of attacks. Following up the two S-class heroes, Bang and Bomb joined in on the attacks and attacked Frieza with their own respective martial arts. Up in the sky, Vegeta and Zarbon couldn't see anything but Frieza dodging all of the attacks that were coming his way. Likewise, Guldo and Recoome's heads were spinning trying to keep track of what was going on. The only warrior who could see the battle properly was Captain Ginyu. But the thing they all had in common was the slack-jawed expressions they had on their faces, both because of the speed of all 5 warriors and how that didn't mean a thing in face of Frieza.

For the final touch, Garou sprinted up, jumped into the sky, and prepared to attack Frieza from above while he was distracted. Regrettably, as soon as Garou was mere inches from striking Frieza, the space emperor grabbed Garou's arm and, using Garou's momentum he built up while midair, swung him in a circle, forcing all four of the heroes backwards. After swinging Garou around, Frieza threw him on the ground and under the feet of Bang and Bomb. Garou quickly pushed himself up and put his hands up in defense, his fighting spirit still shining as brightly as ever.

"Oh, I don't think that will do," said Frieza. Atomic Samurai, Superalloy Darkshine, and Garou tensed. Bang and Bomb looked at each other, and with only a second of eye contact, they knew exactly what the other was thinking. Then, both Bang and Bomb stepped in front of the other three fighters and stood only feet away from Frieza. Both of them nudged their hands back, which was basically saying for the others to stand back. The three did as the two masters said and stepped back a few paces. A small ring of laughter came out of Frieza's mouth. "Oh? What special combo are the two old masters going to throw at me now?"

Bang and Bomb said nothing, taking their fighting stances. The stoic silence and the serious lines engraved on their faces caused Frieza's lips to move down. What were they up to? The two martial artists suddenly began moving their arms and stamped their feet into the ground, causing the rocky surface to crack beneath them.

"Flowing Water Whirlwind Roaring Aura Void Ripping Fist!"

The two martial artists moved toward Frieza at a velocity the space emperor was unprepared for, and they struck Frieza by rotating one of each of their hands into one single fist. When the special move made contact, a massive wave of air streams was released. All three of the fighters watching this technique were in awe; the way the attack perfectly blended the flowing air waves from the Water Stream Rock Smashing Fist and the whirlwind air waves from the Whirlwind Iron Cutting Fist was beyond what even Garou himself thought possible from the Water Stream Rock Smashing Fist. The space emperor was thrown off of his feet, sent crashing into one of the rock formations that made up the great range of canyons surrounding them. The rock formation instantly crumbled when Frieza was smashed into it, quickly burying the space emperor in the process.

Once the two master martial artists had finished the special move, they slowly dropped their hands to let their guard down, and momentarily dropped their knees to the ground. Superalloy Darkshine and Atomic Samurai walked over to them and tried to help them up, but the two pushed themselves back up before the heroes had a chance. "That move's really somethin there," said Superalloy Darkshine, "Exactly the kind of power I expect from the master of the Water Stream Rock Smashing Fist."

"And combined with your brother's martial art, there's no way any monster could survive," added Atomic Samurai.

The martial artists gave the two heroes a courteous nod and a small smile in return. "Since we've passed our prime, we can only perform the technique every once in a while," said Bang.

"Good thing we managed to hit him with it," stated Bomb.

"Hey old guys!" Everyone turned their heads in annoyance toward Garou, who was pointing his finger straight behind the heroes. "I wouldn't start celebrating just yet..." Not knowing what Garou was talking about, the four of them looked to where Garou was pointing, and they grimaced; Frieza had just burst free from the pile of boulders he was under and for the first time, Frieza looked genuinely pissed. The heroes squinted their eyes, and realized the attack had managed to fracture Frieza's body armor, revealing a white-colored upper body with a purple section in the center of his chest and on his shoulders. Frieza floated up into the air, and slowly made his way back to the group of fighters, still shocked at the minimal amount of damage Frieza had sustained. With a gentle thud, Frieza placed his three-toed feet back onto solid ground.

What the heroes didn't know was that Frieza was just as shocked as they were. Frieza could still feel his bones shaking inside of him. The thought that such old relics could create such a powerful attack was astounding. Frieza reckoned they couldn't have a power level that was more than 150,000, yet their mastery in martial arts was something Frieza had never encountered; not even his father managed such precision or deadliness in his strikes. He had been arrogant to take that attack head-on; if he took another one of those attacks, he might be in considerable trouble. The newfound caution extended not only to the two old geezers, but also to the rest of the heroes. If they had abilities and precision just as unique as their aged comrades, then his life could be ended with just one slip-up.

"I'm impressed. I felt that." Frieza closed his eyes, and his body began to shake with rage.

"A LITTLE TOO MUCH!" In an instant, Frieza uppercutted Bang and Bomb in the chin and sent them flying up into the air. To follow up the attack, Frieza prepared two small energy balls at the tips of his fingertips, and fired them directly at Bang and Bomb. But before the energy balls hit them, they were blocked by Superalloy Darkshine, who jumped up in the air to protect Bang and Bomb. The energy balls exploded upon impact, creating a cloud of gray smoke. But Frieza was unprepared yet again; Superalloy Darkshine burst through the cloud of smoke and pummeled Frieza with a cross-armed tackle.

"Superalloy Butterfly!"

Frieza tensed his body and held his arms out to block the tackle, a move to which he instantly regretted. Frieza's feet were planted in the ground, being forced back by the monumental strength channeled in this single tackle. Frieza now understood that his ridiculously large muscles weren't just for show. The two combatants pushed against each other with heated intensity, neither one of them being able to gain a decisive advantage over the other. "Looks like the gun show has made it to the main event! Let's see you handle these babies!" shouted Superalloy Darkshine with a confident smirk on his face.

A blue aura began to flare up around Frieza. Another loud shout escaped from Frieza's lips, and the space emperor began to raise his ki. The surge of energy released caused the ground to shake around him, and the smirk on Superalloy Darkshine's face disappeared. "The circus act's over, bodybuilder!" As the blue energy encased around Frieza began to intensify, so did Frieza's advantage over Superalloy Darkshine. The black bodybuilder was soon being forced back by Frieza, surprised at how a tiny little lizard like this with no muscles had the strength to push back his Superalloy Butterfly. With a final shove, Frieza pushed Superalloy Darkshine off of him, and punched him at maximum power to effectively get through all those layers of muscle. Superalloy Darkshine blocked the punch with his elbows, but that still didn't stop it from hurting, and he was sent backward at blinding speed.

Next up in line, Atomic Samurai jumped into the air, doing multiple front flips in the air, and swung his sword at Frieza, to which the space emperor dodged. The force of Atomic Samurai's slash created a sharp crevice in the ground, eliciting a slight gasp of surprise from Frieza.

"Atomic Slash!" The master swordsman performed his signature sword technique against Frieza. But this time, Frieza would not take his opponent lightly, and he took evasive measures, being very careful to expertly dodge all of the swordsman's slashes.

From behind Atomic Samurai, Bang, Bomb and Garou followed up the attack and struck Frieza as a single unit.

"Water Stream Rock Smashing Fist!"

"Whirlwind Iron Cutting Fist!"

All three of them attacked at the same time while Atomic Samurai was still using his Atomic Slash. A few seconds after, Superalloy Darkshine shook his head to shake off the damage he had taken, and jumped in yet again to join in the fight, punching relentlessly at the tiny, infuriating space lizard. But no matter what they did, Frieza was still able to outmaneuver them all. It was utterly ridiculous.

From afar, the strongest man on Earth, King, was almost ready to piss his pants. He imagined that some god had been on his side today, because the fact that King was able to bullshit his way out of fighting a God-level threat was nothing short of a miracle. But beyond this, King didn't know what else he could do. He knew that bluffing would only go so far, and if 5 S-class heroes actually lost, then his fate was practically sealed. But wait! King began to hear a few moans near him. He looked down, and saw that Puri-Puri-Prisoner, Sweet Mask, and Tatsumaki's eyes were all starting to flutter open. King's heart did about fifty summersaults, and for a brief moment, the emotionless, stoic machine was replaced with that of the nerdish, frightened gamer that he truly was, and he frantically shook all of them awake. "Guys! Guys, come on! Get up!" All three of them were slow to get up, and had to take some time to remember where they were and what had happened. "Are you guys alright?"

"King?" said Sweet Mask. "What's going on?"

"Oh, that little fucking toad..." As soon as Tatsumaki remembered her battle, her entire body began to tremble with rage. "I swear to god, I'm going to-"

"Tornado!" King coldly called her name, bringing her attention to him. "There are bigger battles going on right now than the "little toad,"" said King. He pointed towards Frieza, and the three heroes realized that Bang, Bomb, Atomic Samurai, and Garou were all in battle with Frieza, and for whatever reason, none of them were able to land a firm hit on Frieza.

"I don't know how much longer they can keep this up. They need your help!"

"So then why aren't you in battle?" asked Tornado.

"Yea... If anything, the strongest man on Earth should be fighting the God-level threat more than any other S-class hero," said Sweet Mask with a skeptical tone.

The King Engine started to hum to life, and his eyes became like piercing daggers, setting them on all three of the heroes. "I've explained this to the others, but right now, when the aliens entered Earth's atmosphere, the reaction created a new compound called Engawatson. When it reacted with the bonilezane found in radiation, it causes the rare Organic Jose Phenomenon. This effect is naturally dangerous, but combined with the very high energy from Frieza, the effect is compounded many times over. If I unleashed my full power, the energy could destroy the entire planet. I'm sorry, but I cannot do anything."

Tornado still gave the skeptical gaze to King for a few seconds, then let out an aggravated groan, throwing her hands up into the air in annoyance. "Fine! Whatever! Come on guys, let's go help the manly men!"

"I'll try to bring Metal Bat and Flashy Flash back to it; it's the least that I can do," said King. The three heroes gave small nods to King, and ran off to aid the heroes in the ongoing battle. King sprinted to Metal Bat and Flashy Flash's sides and vigorously shook their bodies, trying to get them to come to it. "Come on, guys. Don't leave me hanging here. We need you..." King continued to shake them as hard as he could, and after about 10 seconds of shaking, there was finally a sign of consciousness. A breath of relief escaped King's lips.

"Guys? Can you hear me?" Like with the other three heroes, both Metal Bat and Flashy Flash responded to King with a series of groans, clutching their heads as memories of the previous battles came back to them. "What's going o-"

King pulled on both of their heads to show them the ongoing battle between the S-class heroes and Lord Frieza. "Right now, they're in a losing battle. Long story short, I can't battle. There's no time to ask why that's the case, it just is. Flashy Flash, do you have an extra weapon on you?"

"Yea..." Flashy Flash dug around his belt, and drew out two dual-blade knifes. "I can manage with this."

"Finally..." Metal Bat propped himself off of the ground with his bat and stared at Frieza with lust for battle burning in his soul. "I get to show that upstart lizard what for! Let's go, Flash!" The blond ninja nodded, and the two of them sprinted off to join in the battle.

"Wait a minute, what the hell..." Frieza muttered to himself when he saw that the number of heroes he was fighting had risen from 5 to 9; yes indeed, it appeared that the earlier combatants had had enough rest and decided to join in on the fun. With this many opponents, Frieza couldn't afford to go offensive, or else he would take 10 hits for every one hit he got on them. He had no choice but to stay on the defensive.

"Hold on..." Frieza began to feel his body grow heavier, his movements more sluggish, and his speed decrease. Frieza had no idea what was the cause of this, until he looked up and saw the tiny little esper, with her body glowing a bright green and her hands held outward towards him. That infuriating wench! She must have been using her psychic abilities to slow his body down so it would be harder to fight all of them at once!

Up in the sky, Tatsumaki's head was racing with thoughts. "How pathetic. You guys can't do anything without me... If I use my powers like this, then the damage will worsen, but if I sleep for the next few days, I think I'll be alright... But..." Tatsumaki was taken aback by Frieza's heightened resistance against her psychic powers. Any normal monster would have been defeated in five seconds with the kind of power she was exerting now, but somehow, Frieza was able to withstand it. Was this the strength of a God-level threat?

"Dragon Thrashing!" Metal Bat unleashed his signature technique, which involved a barrage of smacks from his bat at the same spot from multiple angles. Frieza groaned in anger, having difficulty dodging all of the attacks with the tiny bitch restraining him. On his right, Flashy Flash was attacking him with two dual blades, and on his left, Puri-Puri-Prisoner was swinging his iron ball like he was swinging his dick.

The heroes could see the aggravation in Frieza's face, the more frantic and disorganized behavior in his dodging. They were doing something right, that was for sure.

"Too... many..." Every second, the amount of hits Frieza took began to increase. Even though his speed and strength were superior to all of them, fighting 10 people, with one of them making it almost impossible to use more than half of his power, was too much, even for him.

"Atomic Slash!" The infuriating swordsman once again used his Atomic Slash, and this time, Frieza wasn't able to get out of it unharmed; all over his body, scratches were left by all of the narrow dodges Frieza managed while still working to keep the others from hitting him. "Do it now, Silver Fang!"

"Huh?"

Atomic Samurai jumped up out of Frieza's path, along with the rest of the heroes, making Frieza realize that their attacks were just a decoy for the real attack: the two old geezers. Both of them were at top speed, side-by-side, rushing for their ultimate attack.

"Secret Combination: Cross Fang Dragon Slayer Fist!"

Frieza felt the amazing martial arts prowess yet again, but this time, it was amplified, even more powerful than the Whirlwind Water Roaring Aura Sky Ripping Sky. Frieza blocked some of the attacks, but the esper's psychic binding prevented him from properly defending himself against this kind of united attack, and he was forced to take some of the blows and feel the way the force reverberated throughout his bones, his spine, his muscles. Hell, even his brain was being shaken like a maraca.

The hero hunter repeated his previous move of jumping up into the air to strike Frieza with the finishing blow. They could actually do this! The bastard heroes actually did their jobs for once and put Frieza on the ropes! They could win!

"You're finished, Frieza!"

"NOOOOOO!" The space emperor let out a ear-splintering scream, and released a huge surge of energy, pushing Bang and Bomb back and forcing the other heroes to take evasive maneuvers. The surge of energy created a bright flash, encompassing the entire area in a white dome. However, the attack was only temporary, and in less than a few seconds, the bright dome was gone. In the center of the dome, Frieza chuckled in delight. "That should do it." Frieza looked across the rocky terrain, realizing he was in fact wrong; all of the heroes were standing several hundred feet away, completely uninjured. Even the two old geezers had managed to escape the attack unharmed. Frieza didn't understand how, but then he realized that the esper must have shielded them with a protective barrier. He looked to the sky, and sure enough, Tatsumaki had Bang and Bomb floating up beside her, all three of them encased in the same green aura. "Why you..."

"It's all over," exclaimed Sweet Mask. The group of fighters all jumped simultaneously, until all ten of them were surrounding Frieza in a circle, preventing him from escaping.

"This is the end of the line for you," said Flashy Flash. "You're outnumbered. This is the true power of our planet."

"You don't stand a chance," shouted Metal Bat.

"This is your limit."

At those words, an obvious light bulb lit up in Frieza's head, so obvious that he can't believe it took him this long for him to come to him. The frustrated lines etched in his face vanished, and his lips pursed into a smile.

"Oh you don't know how wrong you are." Frieza's calm and condescending demeanor most of the heroes were all-too-familiar with returned, causing some of them to back off in slight hesitation. Frieza let out a soft chuckle and put his hands to his sides, extending his legs as well. "You have no idea what you've gotten yourselves into.

"If you had been here when I handed to the leader of the Monster Association-"

"You defeated the boss of the Monster Association?" said Puri-Puri-Prisoner, interrupting Frieza.

"Indeed. You should have been there, because if you had, you would have learned that this isn't even close to the pinnacle of my strength. For you see, I am one of the few beings in the universe with the ability to transform at will."

A few gasps escaped the lips of the heroes. "Transform?! What are you talking about?!" shouted Tatsumaki, who was still floating in the air a few feet above the rest of the heroes.

"The form you see before you is not the form I was born with. This state is an altered shape of being designed to keep my power from running amuck."

"Don't fall for it!" shouted Metal Bat. "You can't seriously buy this, right?! This is obviously just a bluff meant to scare us!"

"Is that a fact?!" Frieza craned his head to Metal Bat and flashed him a devious smile. "Very well. I'm only too happy to put your doubts to rest. Now pay close attention; this isn't something you see every day." Despite some of the arrogant claims of falsehood against Frieza's boastful claim, many of the heroes were in fact desperately hoping it was a lie for the unadulterated fear bubbling up inside them from the possibility of witnessing something stronger than the monstrous beast they were fighting right now.

The space emperor bent his knees and prepared to start the show.

"Let's begin the terror."

Once again, Frieza began to shout. As he did, a fluid, light red aura wrapped itself around Frieza. Every single one of the heroes took a step back as they watched the first stage of some unspeakable horror about to unfold. The energy released from his body wasn't just to start a light show; in fact, his entire body began to bulge. The muscles in his arms and legs buffed up, causing Frieza's scream to louden. It sounded like the transformation was actually causing Frieza pain, the surge of power increasing his size beyond what should have been possible. Frieza's height was no longer that of a small 6th grader, but was changing into a stature worthy of an emperor of his status. Frieza's horns elongated, changing shape and pointing upward instead of to the side. His neck stretched out several inches. For the finishing touch, every line and feature carved in his body began to glow a bright red. The screams of pain emanated from Frieza began to die down, until they were nothing more than tired grunts. Frieza took one final breath, then calmly exhaled.

"There. All done," Frieza's voice had deepened, cutting into everyone who heard him speak, "and judging by the looks on your faces, so are you." Frieza turned his head 360 degrees to see the look on their faces, and it was even better than he had expected. Yes indeed, what Frieza had become was beyond anything they had ever thought possible from such a small monster.

Out of all of the heroes, Superalloy Darkshine was in fact the first one to snap out of the self-induced shocked state. "Now this is what I was expecting from the Devil of Frost!" exclaimed Darkshine. Frieza turned himself to face Superalloy Darkshine, giving him a sly smirk as they stared each other in the eye. "If you ask me, this is the form you should stay in, because with this, I can see real muscles! But..." Superalloy Darkshine raised his fist, willfully determined to reign victorious, buffed his entire body up, and struck the space emperor with everything he had.

"Superalloy Bazooka!"

"It won't work this time..." Darkshine's face completely faltered, the supremely confident hero facade he built up vanishing into the wind. With almost minimal effort, Frieza caught Darkshine's fist. "Now it's my turn." Frieza nailed Darkshine in the stomach with his left knee, causing Darkshine to grunt in agony. Following up was a right fist slamming across Darkshine's face, and for the final touch, Frieza cupped his hands together and blasted Darkshine away with an orange energy ball. Darkshine was blown away, and the energy ball exploded like others before.

"Bastard!" Next up to bat, Metal Bat bounded toward Frieza, prepping his ultimate attack.

"Savage Tornado!" Metal Bat wildly swung his bat with enough speed to create a small tornado. What the heroes seeing was unreal; Frieza merely stood there, taking all of Metal Bat's hits, with not so much as a scratch forming on his body.

"Ah-ah-ah..." After being hit by the bat 100 times, Frieza decided he let Metal Bat have his fun and caught his bat with the tips of his fingers. Metal Bat's eyes became just like Superalloy Darkshine: lit with fear. "You're too old to play with toys." Frieza gripped the bat, causing it to crumple up. Metal Bat's heart jumped up to his mouth. The space emperor took the bat out of the teenagers hands, whose loose grip made it easy to take. After looking at the bat for a few seconds, Frieza shrugged his shoulders and tossed the bat up into the air up to god-knows-where.

"But my bat's indestructible..."

"Ah, my boy, everything is destructible," jeered Frieza. "Here, let me quell your suffering." Frieza slammed his elbow down on Metal Bat's back, then kicked Metal Bat's face with such strength that even his fighting spirit couldn't compensate for, sending him to the same fate as Darkshine and knocking him unconscious yet again. Frieza let out a hardy laugh. "Now let's see who's next..." After searching the group of terror-stricken heroes, he finally found his next volunteer.

"You're up next, little one." In the blink of an eye, Frieza disappeared, quickly reappearing behind Tornado of Terror. The space emperor lightly tapped her shoulder with his finger, causing her to jump up in fear. The female hero's fear quickly disappeared, and Tatsumaki tried to restrain his body just as she had done before, but it wasn't working. The power he had now made his other form look like a sleeping kitten; she couldn't do anything to him. "Not in my house..." Tatsumaki put up a psychic barrier to protect herself, but Frieza ripped through it like paper, proceeding to punch her square in the nose. The female esper clutched her nose, screaming in pain. Frieza cackled in delight, and finished off the annoying esper with a single kick.

The remaining fighters could not believe their eyes: Frieza was decimating the world's most powerful heroes with no more than two attacks like this was nothing more than child's play. The space emperor assuredly crossed his arms, floating back down to the center of the remaining group of fighters.

"So who's next?"

The next moments were a blur to all of the fighters; all of them decided to go for broke and attack him all at once, but it was pointless. Frieza was so fast, none of the heroes ever realized he had even moved. With nothing more than single punches, each fighter was rewarded broken bones, bloody faces, torn muscles, injuries that were impossible to simply tough out.

"Oh, I'm feeling real good about my life right now."

All remaining heroes landed on the ground with a silent thud. It was over; Bang, Bomb, Garou, Flashy Flash, Puri-Puri-Prisoner, Atomic Samurai, Superalloy Darkshine, Sweet Mask, Tatsumaki, and Metal Bat had all been taken out. The only soul still standing was King, the world's strongest man.

The only one still conscious was Garou. With the last of his strength, the hero hunter silently uttered these words: "Go kick his ass, King."

"And the rogue warrior stands alone!" shouted Frieza. "I must say, I am rather curious of what the proclaimed strongest man on this planter has to offer." Frieza unhurriedly made his way toward the final opponent, strutting around like he hadn't a care in the world, which thankfully, he didn't. King didn't move a muscle, he didn't speak, he didn't do anything except stare right back at Frieza with the cold, signature gaze he gave any monster unfortunate to come across his path.

20 steps had been taken, and Frieza now stood before King, hovering over him, glaring at him with natural curiosity. The wind had stopped. Tension and intensity entered the atmosphere, and between Frieza and King, the boiling fire of battle grew hotter and hotter with each passing second. The spectators watched in earnest to witness Frieza take on his final opponent and probably the toughest challenger any of them had ever seen.

After about a minute of this silent apprehension, it was King who finally broke the silence and spoke. "Do you know who I am, Frieza?"

"You're the strongest man, are you not?" inclined Frieza.

"My name is King, and yes, I am the strongest man on this planet." As soon as he finished his sentence, a rapid beating noise filled the air. Frieza's eyebrows furrowed, wondering where this random noise had come from, until he realized the beating was coming from King. "What's the matter? Are you scared?"

King scoffed. "Scared? Of course not. The public knows this as the King Engine, which is the sound my heart makes when I prepare for battle. For all opponents I face, it's the last sound they ever here."

"Oh-oh, ominous!" The space emperor took a fighting pose, while King remained motionless. "Well then let's put it to the test."

"Hold on." King put his hand up into the air, catching Frieza off guard. "Before we fight, I'd like to know a little more about you."

"You do?" Frieza went out of his fighting pose and crossed his arms. "And why might that be? Are you stalling for reinforcements to arrive? Have you realized that I am an opponent that cannot be beaten? Because if you have, then I officially consider you the smartest being on this mud-ball."

"Not at all. No, I am just genuinely curious. I was warned about your arrival though a prophecy, but beyond that, I know practically nothing behind you. You are by far the strongest warrior this planet has ever come across and the strongest opponent I will ever face; just killing you wouldn't be right. I need to know the history behind the Emperor of the Universe in order to be truly satisfied with my victory." Frieza's face hadn't changed a millimeter. His arms were still crossed in front of him, and the skeptical look in his eyes never left.

Inside King's mind, he was already thinking what his epitaph would be on his tombstone. It was over. He'd shit his way through a lot of problems, but this was finally the time he kicked the bucket. Saitama wasn't coming, all the heroes were down, and the lie he had lived for these past years was about to be revealed to the world in all its undignifying glory. Today was King's demise.

Or so he thought. Somehow, that unbelievable luck King had acquired these past few years had saved his ass yet again, or maybe the God watching over him had decided to give King a second chance, because Frieza actually bought it. "Why, I've never been asked such a question in all my years. To be honest, I'm actually quite flattered. Very well." Frieza unfolded his arms, and the skeptical look had faded. "I'll humor you and tell you the story of my grandiose title.

"I am born to a race of extremely powerful warriors. My father, King Cold, raised me alongside my brother, Cooler."

"Did you have a mother?" King had to stall as much as he could without making it so obvious, and that meant dragging this conversation out by asking as many questions or commenting as much as he could.

"Why yes, I do. My parents trained me during my childhood, and when I was old enough, my father allowed me and my brother to officially rule as part of the Galactic Frieza Army. Throughout my years, I conquered many planets and enslaved many races. All-in-all, I own 448 planets."

"Quite impressive," said King.

"Why, thank you." Frieza gave King a small smile. "While I enslaved many races, the race that was the most powerful by far was the Saiyan race. You might not know, but one of them is up there." Frieza pointed behind him to where his subordinates were watching. "The one in the black hair is Vegeta, Prince of Saiyans and the last remaining saiyan in existence."

"What happened to the rest of them?"

"Well, since you're going to die anyway, I might as well tell you. You see, there was a legend of a Super Saiyan, a warrior of unrivaled power and one of the only beings who could ever pose a threat to me. At first, I brushed this off as nothing more than a farcical myth; however, after many saiyans started emerging with rapidly evolving potential, I started to get a little edgy. With so many saiyans growing at such amazing speeds, I couldn't just sit back and do nothing. So I did the simplest thing possible: I torched the whole barrel of monkeys.

"In fact..." Frieza suddenly began counting to himself, greatly perplexing King. "I think this is the 25 year anniversary! Huh! Imagine that!" Frieza let out a few chuckles of amazement. "It must be destiny, I suppose. The fateful day the saiyans were extinguished was truly a spectacle to behold."

Up in the spectators stand, Vegeta tried to listen in on the conversation they were having, but was unable to get anything more than a few words, one of them being saiyans. "Zarbon, can you hear what Frieza's talking about?" said Vegeta.

"It's Lord Frieza, and no, I cannot," replied Zarbon.

"Whatever..." Vegeta grumbled to himself and clenched his fists in anger.

"Ah, the look on King Vegeta's face is something I will never forget. King Vegeta, the ruler of all saiyans, bid a hasty retreat at the power my first form yields, and in a foolish last stand, was ended with a single punch like the woeful dotard he was."

"You... you..." The person who spoke wasn't King. Frieza and King turned around to see someone entirely unexpected. Up in the sky, Vegeta's body tensed, refusing to believe what he was seeing. Of all the times in all the places, he had to come now, just when Frieza was about to do combat with the strongest man in the planet and just when the horrifying truth of the Saiyan's extinction was being revealed. "The brick-headed spastic actually had the gaul to show his face again."

Nappa, the Saiyan General, had returned, and he had heard every word of what Frieza just said.

To describe in words what Nappa was feeling was utterly impossible. No word in any language came even close to what Nappa was feeling at that moment. For 25 years, he had to live with the guilt, pain, sadness, and grief of his race's extinction, and to know he hadn't been there with King Vegeta was something he never forgave himself for. For 25 years, he served under the loathsome, conniving, sadistic, lying, dishonorable snake who destroyed his home world and killed his king. Not a single day went by without thinking what he would say to King Vegeta if he ever got to see him again, to tell him he was sorry he couldn't be the mentor to his son the King had hoped him to be, to tell him that despite his best efforts, his pride and hubris had blinded him to the point of abandoning his saiyan brethren, and to tell him he was the only true friend he ever had. The two shared the brotherly bond all saiyans should have shown for their brethren, and standing a few feet away from him, his killer stood grinning and gloating with hubris, without a care in the world.

"You exterminated my race..."

Frieza was unsure of how to respond to this, and mumbled a bunch of incoherent nonsense.

Something became... different in Nappa. The ground began to tremble around his feet. Out of nowhere, lightning began to strike down from the sky. Pebbles began to rise from the ground, floating in the air. The ground below Nappa then shattered underneath him. His eyes began to flicker, changing in color. A gold aura begin to flicker in and out of existence around Nappa. What was happening to him?

"I will... make you... suffer..."

All the rage, turmoil, resentment, and grief within him was boiling inside him, setting his very soul on fire. It was like a surge of energy, a rush of adrenaline that he'd never experienced before. He felt like his entire body was going to explode, taking the entire planet along with him. With the last restraints of anger finally being unleashed, Nappa let out a cry of rage, his aura bursting out in an uncontrollable torrent of flame.

"WHAT?!" shouted Frieza.

When the scream of Nappa echoed to a stop, the earthquakes and lightning immediately ceased. It was as if time had ceased completely into a frozen standstill. A golden light radiated from Nappa. An intense pressure surrounded Frieza and King, threatening to knock King unconscious from the unbelievable gravity surrounding him. Likewise, the spectators watching above could feel this unprecedented wave of energy. This pressure almost took away the physical changes that had occurred. His muscles had bulged in size, causing him to gain about an extra foot in height. His eyes and facial hair were the same color as the golden aura radiating around him.

Ginyu, Recoome, Guldo, and Zarbon didn't understand what this meant. None of them had ever heard of a saiyan transformation beyond the Great Ape. But this wasn't any great ape! A series of baffled stutters caught their attention. Turning their heads, they saw Prince Vegeta, who looked like someone had stabbed him in the chest. What the hell did he know that they didn't?

"No... This can't be... Don't tell me..."

"What the hell have you become?!" screamed Frieza.

The Saiyan General gave no response at first. A few seconds passed, and the General looked up at Frieza. When Nappa focused his gaze on Frieza, the tyrant was rendered speechless.

"I am a Super Saiyan. Now prepare to burn in hell."

* * *

 _Oh ma god! Nappa turned into a super saiyan?! Jesus Christ! The legend has awoken!_

 _Now, for all the viewers, I'd like you to place a vote on what your favorite fight of the Friezamania was on my poll. I put it on my profile page at the top of the page, and at the start of the next chapter, I'll announce which battle was favorite among the viewers. I'd appreciate the opinion, and I'm just curious which was favorite, so don't be shy. For me, my favorite was Guldo vs. Tatsumaki. Anyway, until next chapter, when the battle between the Super Saiyan and The Emperor of the Universe will commence!_


	22. A Legendary Awakening

_It's Chapter 22, baby! I've also updated my other story, Monstrum Hominis, so be sure to take a look at that. Anyway, sorry for the long wait, but at least I didn't bail on the story. Now, witness the battle between the Super Saiyan Nappa and Second Form Frieza in all of its petrifying glory!_

* * *

"I am a Super Saiyan. Now prepare to burn in hell."

A swirl of confusion, rage, and shock rocked Vegeta. The Prince of Saiyans refused to believe what he was seeing. Nappa, a super saiyan? Vegeta simply couldn't understand it. Now, there was no doubt that Nappa was of the higher echelon of the saiyan race, and given his status as the General of the Saiyan army, he would have eventually attained the transformation, but that would only be after the Prince himself attained it first! The idea that a gibbering, hot-headed fool like Nappa could attain the Legendary Super Saiyan transformation before he did was inconceivable!

"NOOOO!" Everyone looked up to the sky when they heard Vegeta's scream echo through the land. The prince was so engulfed in rage, it actually manifested around him in a purple aura, and his face was so angry, one could hardly even tell it was human. The veins in his eyes turned red, the hairs on his tail pointing out, and his fists clenched in fury. "I REFUSE TO ACCEPT THIS! I AM THE CULMINATION OF EVERYTHING SUPERIOR IN THE SAIYAN RACE! NAPPA, YOU ARE NOTHING BUT A WORM COMPARED TO M-"

Vegeta's sentence was abruptly cut off, for he felt like a cannonball had shot itself straight into Vegeta's stomach. It wasn't a cannonball, but in fact, it was Nappa's fist that had barreled itself into Vegeta's stomach; a cannonball would have been preferable. The Saiyan General was so fast, not even Captain Ginyu himself saw him clearly. The red veins in Vegeta's eyes bulged to even larger sizes, as lines of drool streaming down Vegeta's face. This pain was like nothing he had ever experienced. "What in the..." Nappa said nothing to Prince Vegeta. No snide comments, no condescending jokes, no snarls or anger, just a neutral face. It was as if Nappa was reminiscing of the moments in Vegeta's life, what he had done, and how well did he honor his saiyan ancestry. After about 10 seconds, the Saiyan General bent his head down and whispered something into Vegeta's ear that would forever change the Prince of Saiyans.

"Your father would be so disappointed in the man you've become." With a light push from Nappa's fingers, Vegeta was sent on a free-fall, his body and his mind broken yet again by another earth-shattering defeat.

"Is somebody gonna get him?" said Recoome. Nobody made any movement to save the prince from falling. "Fine, I'll do it!" Only at the last moment, when Vegeta's face was almost inches away from the ground, that Guldo lifted his finger, telekinetically saving Vegeta from a broken nose. Guldo lifted his finger further up into the air, bringing Vegeta up and laying him down on the edge of the ship. Zarbon floated beside Vegeta and put his fingers to his neck for a pulse. "Well, he's still breathing. He's just knocked out."

"Well I'm not putting him in a healing pod!" shouted Guldo. "Recoome, you do it!"

Recoome grunted in annoyance, replying, "Fine! Recoome will take ol Veggie inside!" Recoome slowly flew over to Vegeta's side and slung him over his shoulder, making his way toward the healing quarters.

Frieza had turned around to see what Nappa has done to Vegeta, but when he turned around, Nappa was gone.

"I'm right here."

Frieza's head spin back around to meet Nappa's golden eyes, glowing with the power and rage or a super saiyan. Frieza's tongue was tied in knots; how could a saiyan obtain such speed?

"You have no idea what you're up against!" shouted Nappa. Frieza's eyes widened, and he rapidly put his arms up to block the blow that struck him. Even when he defended himself, a surge of energy sent him flying up into the sky, several bursts of wind pressure released in the process, 10 times more powerful than any other previous bursts of air, destroying the cliffs off of many canyons nearby. Nappa followed up his attack and flew up into the air, pummeling Frieza with a barrage of punches. Frieza attempted to retaliate, but Frieza couldn't keep up with Nappa's new super saiyan speed. The golden aura began to increase in intensity, creeping up onto Frieza's arms and quickly enveloping both warriors. After several punches, Frieza finally managed to catch his fist. Nappa's eyebrows furrowed, and he threw a fist with his other hand. Frieza caught the second fist as well, and the two of them proceeded to push each other midair. Frieza's aura began to shine around him, combining with Nappa's energy to create a swirling vortex of colored ki. Frieza's mouth was pursed into a downward snarl of rage, incapable of understanding how Nappa gained such an unbelievable boost in strength. Frieza began to feel the pressure in his wrists increase, the aura and dominance of Nappa gradually overwhelming Frieza by the second. The Saiyan General applied just a minuscule increase in force, which was enough to send jolts of pain through Frieza's body and caused him to let out a scream of pain.

"INSOLENT MONKEY!" Nappa slapped Frieza across the face, and followed up with a right front kick to his chin that propelled him upward. Nappa flew up above him, and for the finishing touch, slammed Frieza downward with a knee to the stomach. Both Frieza and Nappa crashed down to the Earth at amazing speeds, kicking up huge clouds of dust when they reached the ground. The dust quickly cleared, and the spectators saw Nappa holding Frieza by the neck, the golden energy still burning brightly around him. Nappa scoffed.

"Come on! Don't tell me that this is the best you can do!" shouted Nappa, "I haven't even broken a sweat!" Nappa opened his palm, firing a burst of yellow energy that sent Frieza rocketing through the Earth, creating a canyon that spanned several hundred meters wide and several hundred meters deep, stupefying all of the spectators. "I want the honor of taking you down at your best! I owe it to all of the saiyans who died by your hand!" Nappa spread out his legs, reached his arms out, and from his palms, fired lightning-fast bullets of energy. Frieza raised himself off the ground, shaking off the trauma of the blast, and quickly raised his arms to defend himself from the onslaught of bullets about to strike him. It felt as if dozens upon dozens of bees were swarming him, stinging him, pestering him to no end. As the seconds passed, the multitude and power of the bullets increased. For the final touch, Nappa launched an energy bullet the size of a soccer ball. The energy ball exploded upon contact, enveloping him in a cloud of smoke.

"GGGGRRRRAAAAAHHHHH!" The energy from Frieza disseminated the cloud of smoke. The Saiyan General smirked; it looked like he managed to get a rise out of him. "I must concede, I hadn't expected such a grandiose display of vigor from a creature so low on the food chain!" shouted Frieza, "But alas, a monkey is still a monkey, and I've killed plenty in my day. Million. Literally millions." Nappa's aura flared up. "So if you think that now you're a Super Saiyan, you're better than me, LORD FRIEZA," Frieza annunciated the word "Lord" as he spoke, "than you're dead wrong. Nobody humiliates me and walks away!"

Rocks that laid around Frieza floated up in the sky, and the ground around him began to violently shake. Nappa's senses spiked; somehow, he was making himself even stronger. His body tensed. Maybe this wasn't going to be as easy as he thought. His thought was instantly proven correct. Frieza flew up toward Nappa at a speed much faster than just a few seconds ago. Nappa barely had time to block the punch and return fire with a counter-punch. The two of them flew to the skies and struck each other with powerful knee strikes. Both of them instantly disappeared from the spectator's line of sight, with the only visible sign that a battle was even taking place being the intensely sharp bursts of air pressure that managed to actually ruffle up some of the spectators, specifically King.

Speaking of King, the world's strongest man, the hero had his eyes closed and his hands clasped together, quietly sending prayers to the god up above who kept on saving his ass time and time again. He really didn't deserve it, but he still appreciated it nonetheless. "Hold on..." A small stream of some odd liquid stuck itself to his pants. It took a few seconds to realize what that odd liquid really was, and as soon as he did, he slapped his hand to his forehead. "Of course..." Well, what was a pair of ruined pants in comparison to one's life?

Once the feeling of embarrassment faded, King focused his attention to other matters at hand. All of the heroes were lying unconscious in the middle of the battlefield; if this battle continued to heat up, the heroes could be turned into collateral damage. "Well, I haven't done shit-for-dick since I got here, so..." Despite the fear welling up in his heart, a combination of both bravery and guilt overpowered this primeval fear. He'd lived this lie for more than three years now, and because of it, not only did he steal the credit from an honest man, but had also put innocent civilians in harm's way countless times simply for being the world's strongest man. "It's about goddamn I grow a pair to replace the womanhood in between my legs," mumbled King.

The hero took a deep breath, and sprinted into the heat of the battle. King covered his face with his hands to avoid any more scars, and had to do whatever he could to make sure he wasn't blown away from the bursts of wind. The first person King grabbed was, ironically, the Hero Hunter, Garou. King grunted; Garou was a lot heavier than he thought. Either that, or King was really weak. "It's probably the latter..." The hero slung Garou around his shoulders and ran, or more specifically, trotted, as fast as he could back to a location far enough from the battleground. "Phew." King swiped the sweat off his forehead. He only carried one body, and already he was sweating like a pig. "I really need to work out." Taking another deep breath, he ran into the hellfire of battle, determined to do whatever he could to help.

Up in the sky, the battle raged on with unbridled ferocity. Unlike a few moments ago, Frieza was able to hold his own against Super Saiyan Nappa, proving that his recent power up wasn't just for show. No, the fight between the Super Saiyan of legend and the Emperor of the Universe had only just begun.

Nappa and Frieza were exchanging several close-range blows, neither one of them giving the other a single inch. Frieza jabbed Nappa, and Nappa blocked the punch with his elbow. An onslaught of quick jabs followed, and Nappa attempted to block them just as he did before, but with little success. Frieza attacked Nappa with a knee strike, sending him crashing down to the cliffside. Frieza's hands clamped Nappa's face and neck, preventing him from speaking. Two pink energy balls formed at the palms of Frieza's hands. The energy balls enveloped around Nappa. Frieza continued the relentless assault with a barrage of pink energy waves, creating a large explosion with Nappa in the center of it. Frieza floated above the barren crater, his arms crossed in confidence and his lips pursed into a small smile. "I know you're still out there, so don't waste any time playing dead."

The dust from the explosion swirled around in a tornado-like fashion, combining with the aura of the Super Saiyan Nappa to create a light brown and yellow vortex. All the nearby rocks were destroyed, and in the center of the vortex, Nappa shot back up, surprising Frieza, and punched Frieza hard in the chin.

Nappa rotated his body midair in order to gain momentum in his spin kick, successfully hitting Frieza and sending him flying to the right. Nappa blazed forward at full-speed, performed a forward front-flip, and kicked Frieza downward. Before Frieza crashed down to the ground again, his ki flared around him, flying back up to Nappa. Nappa threw a yellow orb of energy down, but Frieza knocked it aside, and swung a left fist, to which Nappa met with his own fist. Both warriors struggled midair, both of them trying to gain the edge over the other. "Now this is more like it," said Nappa through grunts.

"Oh, you think so?" replied Frieza, "Well, I hope it's everything you wanted." The aura around Frieza brightened again, and Nappa felt an intense pressure creeping up as Frieza's energy began to rise. "But enough playtime. Come and get the first real fight you've had in 20 years, you filthy monkey!"

"SLIMY REPTILE!"

Both of their aura's burst around their bodies. The energy from their bodies swirled around them, expanding in size to form giant torrential whirlpools in the sky, all-the-while their voices beginning to rise in intensity. The whirlpools of energy continued to grow and grow, becoming more intense as they increased in size. When the two energies had gained enough mass, they eventually touched each other. A series of sparks and sizzles filled the air when the two of them met, each orb of energy fluctuating in the epicenter of this spherical struggle.

"Unbelievable," muttered Captain Ginyu, "This is the power of a Super Saiyan..." Captain Ginyu looked down, and realized a current of wind was whipping up. It took him a second to figure out this sudden windstorm was being caused by Frieza and Nappa's energy collision. The winds were brewing at such fast velocity, large rocks and leftover debris from previous battles were being lifted up into the air. All of the wind currents and debris were being sucked into the epicenter of the clash of energies, instantly being vaporized upon contact. Soon after, the auras began to die down, regressing back to fiery flames wrapping around the two fighters with their warmth.

But neither one made a move. Both warriors merely stared each other down, the intensity of the battle being played out with only looks. Contrary to their passionate gazes, their bodies were sedate and tranquil, not even a finger twitching out of place. Frieza and Nappa calmly floated downward to the ground. The pair walked toward each other until they were inches apart. Standing so close to each other, the spectators noticed that even in his second form, Nappa was still a few inches taller and his muscles more defined thanks to the Super Saiyan power surging through his veins. Not a single sound was released from their vocal cords. The only thing that could be heard was the sound of wind and the silent stutters of shock from some of the spectators.

After the intense moment of silence, it was Nappa who put it to rest. Nappa smirked. He swung his fist, slapping Frieza across the face and putting him off-balance. Up next came an elbow to Frieza's face, and then a right fist planted in the lizard's gut. Frieza retaliated by sticking his palm out onto the ground, spun 360 degrees like a spinning top, and sweeped Nappa's feet. However, Nappa anticipated the move, and jumped up into the air, firing a small burst of energy at Frieza. Frieza followed Nappa's move and flew up into the sky, narrowly dodging the blast of energy. Frieza cupped his hands together, gathered the energy from his body, and blasted a purple energy wave. Nappa braced himself by craning his right arm back. "That won't work on me!" The Saiyan General yelled out, and when the energy wave was just about to hit him, Nappa deflected it with his hand. "No, but this will..."

Appearing right behind the energy wave, Frieza honed in on his kill while he was distracted with the two balls of energy he had gathered in his palms. Nappa wasn't fast enough to evade Frieza at such a short distance, so he was forced to take the brunt of the energy balls. Nappa was hurtled up into the sky. When he stopped, he shook his head to shake off the trauma, and glared down at Frieza.

"I've had enough of this! Time for you to pay, Frieza!" Nappa opened up his lower jaw and prepared his signature attack. Even now, he couldn't believe how much energy he had gained. The ki flowing up his body and through his throat was unbelievable. Frieza tensed; Nappa must have been preparing one of his signature attacks. "Not a chance!" shouted Frieza. Frieza held his palm up in the air, and a purple orb of energy appeared in his hand the size of a bowling ball. A second later, it became the size of an exercise ball, and the next second, it was as big as a wrecking ball. Instead of firing the ball, a beam of energy fired out of the orb.

"SUPER BREAKER CANNON!" The full brunt of these pulverizing blasts sparkled and sizzled in the sky. Even while midair, the tremors were potent enough to not only shake nearby canyons, but everything for around one hundred miles. The quaking even managed to reach the Mantle of the Earth, fracturing the millions of years of molten rock that had formed. The energy waves were on equal footing at first impact. Howbeit, the unbridled ferocity of a saiyan and the advanced cellular biology coupled together was truly a force to be reckoned with, and for Frieza, his current power simply wasn't enough to match it. Nappa's new and improved Breaker Cannon devoured Frieza's energy wave like it was a tiny appetizer, and made its way toward the main course: roasted lizard. "GGGGRRRAAAAAHHHHHHHH!" Frieza did nothing but remain motionless as he was served up on a hot platter.

Captain Ginyu cried out, "My lord!"

Up in the sky, Nappa slyly grinned. "Rest in pieces."

On the bystander's stands, something caught Recoome's eye. "Look!" Recoome pointed up above him, and sure enough, Lord Frieza was floating up in the sky, assuming the same confident smirk on Nappa's face. Concurrently, the Saiyan General's lips pursed downward into a disappointed grimace.

"Of course..."

"It's a real bitch, ain't it?" said Frieza, "When you can't properly annihilate someone? It makes you feel like you've lost your touch at murder. Well, I wouldn't know the feeling."

Both warriors floated down to the ground yet again. "You know, in a way, I'm actually rather relieved that you're the Legendary Super Saiyan."

Nappa snarled. "What are you talking about?" By the time Nappa finished his sentence, they had already reached the ground.

"Oh, isn't it obvious to you?" said Frieza. "Well, with your abysmally low intelligence, I imagine it would take some time for your mind to wrap your head around this. If it isn't obvious to you," Frieza gestured his hands to his entire body, "This isn't the form you've been familiar with the past 25 years."

"Yea. You transformed. So what?"

"Well, rather than wasting my time explaining it to you, why don't I treat you to the same terror the other Earthlings had the pleasure to experience. Yes, perhaps this would be the best way to understand just how truly helpless you are against me.

"You see, each time I transform, my power increases exponentially, and as it so happens, I still have two transformations beyond this one. So are you finally starting to put the pieces together in that virtually non-existent brain of yours?"

"You're bluffing," shouted Nappa.

In response, Frieza egotistically leered.

"Now, allow me to demonstrate. You should consider this an honor. You shall be the first one to ever lay eyes upon me in this next state." Frieza crossed his arms, and held his hands out to his sides. As soon as he did, a crimson aura with a black outline flared up. Simultaneously, red bio-electricity was generated all around him. Nappa grit his teeth, and raised his hands up in defensive position.

"AHHAHAHAHA! Prepare yourself and behold! The second transformation of the mighty Frieza!"

Frieza shouted in agony, unnerving Nappa as he did so. Suddenly, two large spikes grew out of his upper back, with a smaller spike forming a few inches above his tail. He went from shouting to grunting as he underwent his transformation. The two shoulder-pads of his biologic exosuit shot out, increasing several inches in length. Then, came quite probably the most alarming and abhorrent change in his figure: his skull started to elongate. Being the most painful part of the transformation, his neck veins bulged and his eyes stretched out in his sockets. On his head, two more small spikes grew out to accompany his black horns, which were actually turning white for some bizarre reason. For the final touch, his head instantaneously protracted outward, becoming about two feet long. A loud sigh of relief escaped Frieza's lips once his transformation was complete. He now stood about an inch taller than Super Saiyan Nappa, although his gargantuan head made the difference in height appear much larger.

"What do you think? Was it worth the wait?" The voice Frieza spoke with now was somehow even deeper than before.

The Saiyan General showed palpable facial signs of disgust. It appeared like he was about to vomit. His senses were tingling with danger throughout the entire transformation. He could feel an immense rise in power that he wasn't prepared for. "You vile freak!" A chorus of amused chuckles came from Frieza. Nappa hadn't expected this sudden turn of events. Be that as it was, Nappa wouldn't be intimidated like this.

"So what? You changed into a Ridley Scott ripoff monster! You think that will make any difference against me?! I'm the Super Saiyan of Legend! A warrior of pure fighting instinct and unprecedented power! Scum like you can transform a hundred times, and still not even be a tenth as mighty as me!"

"Well I guess we'll find out soon enough, won't we?"

"I guess we will," replied Nappa. The two combatants took a fighting stance. Round two of the Legendary Super Saiyan versus the Emperor of the Universe was about to begin.

The Super Saiyan's golden aura flared up around him again. He lunged for Frieza, determined to wipe that smug grin of of Frieza's face. "YOU'RE MINE, FRIEZA!" Before his very eyes, Frieza vanished. Nappa incoherently stuttered. Where did he go? He was a Super Saiyan! His battle instincts should be at there peak! There was no way he could lose sight of him so quickly, especially when he was right in front of him!

"Right behind you." The voice that spoke was so calm, it was almost frightening. Frieza kicked Nappa in the small of his back, eliciting a grunt of pain from Nappa. Nappa swung his body around to strike Frieza, but he was already gone. Frieza struck again, punching Nappa hard in the cheek. Nappa quickly flew up into the sky to gain some distance from Frieza. "I've got to keep on guard," spoke Nappa to himself, "I can beat this bastard. I just have to play it smart." He craned his head back to see if Frieza was catching up to him, but to his shock, he was gone. He turned his head back in front of him, and surprise surprise, Frieza was floating right in front of him. "How nice of you to join me, I've been waiting for quite some time."

The veins in Nappa's forehead bulged out of control, and the golden aura sprang up to life as rage flowed forth through the mighty saiyan's veins. "YYYYYYYYYAAAAAA!" Nappa struck Frieza with a hard punch, but to his surprise, Frieza had no problems dodging it. Nappa continued with a string of punches, but Frieza continued to swiftly evade all of his strikes, all-the-while smiling like he was on a Sunday stroll. "DAMN IT! DAMN IT!" Even though Nappa's speed was impressive, it was like all of his power was inconsequential in the face of this new transformation. Frieza cackled in delight. "It seems like you're rather befuddled. You know, you could always start flinging your feces as a last resort. Who knows? You might get a lucky throw."

Nappa fired a short range Breaker Cannon from his mouth. A bright flash filled the sky. The corners of his mouth raised upwards in delight. "Yes! A direct hit!" He beamed with confidence; no matter how much power Frieza had gained from this new form, there was no way he could survive a point-blank blast like that. He was done for! When the bright light waned out, the corners of his mouth dropped down to the ground. There wasn't a single scratch to be found on Frieza's hideous body.

"Now that you realize your Super Saiyan power is of no use anymore, that feeling of helplessness I was hoping to elicit must be settling in nicely," Frieza raised his right hand up into the air. "Now, have you ever heard of paintball?"

"Yes..."

"Just remove the T."

"I don't get it..." A lightning-fast beam of purple energy shot out of Frieza's fingertip and hit Nappa in the knee. "AHHH! I GET IT!" Firing from both his fingertips now, the Space Emperor chuckled with glee and proceeded to torture Nappa with an endless barrage of death beams. Nappa attempted to power up, to get out of the crazy finger beams, but there were too many of them for him to properly concentrate with the searing pain shooting up through him. On the sidelines, Guldo, Recoome, Zarbon, and Captain Ginyu were smiling, content in seeing their master overpower that filthy idiotic ape.

"Lord Frieza's really showing him what for," said Recoome.

"Nappa doesn't stand a chance now," added Guldo.

"I always knew Lord Frieza had the edge," said Captain Ginyu, "Even a Super Saiyan doesn't stand a chance against the Emperor of the Universe."

"The battle's already over."

On the ground, King's entire body was drenched with sweat. He had already taken Metal Bat, Bang, Bomb, and Tatsumaki off of the battlefield and out of harm's way. By the time he got to Atomic Samurai, however, most of the strength had left his body, so he was reduced to dragging the remaining heroes off with the rest of them. It had taken a few minutes, but he finally managed to get everyone to safety. Well, everyone except Superalloy Darkshine. If he tried to drag that 550 pound hunk of flesh, he would throw his back out, maybe even break it. Now that he finished his job, he turned his attention back to the battle between Frieza and Nappa. Even though they were high up in the air, it didn't take hawk-like vision to see Nappa was getting pummeled. He squinted his eyes, and realized Frieza's form was different from before. His head was like two feet long, and a bunch of spikes had popped out of his back. He was so busy with rescuing the heroes, he must have completely missed this unfortunate turn of events. If things kept going on as they were now, not only King, but the entire planet would be done for. That bluff had been a stroke of unbelievable luck, and he wasn't very confident he could occupy Frieza's attention long enough for Saitama to arrive.

"We're gonna need another miracle...

* * *

His metallic feet crunched loudly against the asphalt on the sidewalk. Armored Gorilla, member of the House of Evolution, an organization once dedicated to eradicating the world of inferior lifeforms and creating human perfection, was returning home from a quick visit to the grocery store. He had to admit, he somewhat enjoyed the tranquility of this new lifestyle. Dr. Genus and his clones were now treating him with much more respect than before, and there was an air of mutual respect between them that hadn't been there before.

He looked around him, noticing the desolate nature of the landscape and the absence of any life. Did this have something to the Monster Association that gorilla monster had mentioned earlier? He wasn't sure. He walked up to the shop; he had finally made it back home. A bell chimed when armored Gorilla opened the door. At the sound, one of Dr. Genus' clones kindly greeted Armored Gorilla. "Good afternoon, Armored Gorilla!"

Armored Gorilla smiled back at the clone. "Good afternoon, doctor! I got the ingredients you needed for the new Takoyaki dish you wanted to add to the menu!"

"Excellent! Let's get started right away!" Armored Gorilla walked behind the counter with the clone to prepare his cuisine.

Outside the shop, the S-class hero, Zombieman, was standing with his hand stuffed into his coat pocket. Zombieman had trailed this ape for quite some time, and at last, he had finally found the base of operations for the organization that was responsible for all of the havoc wreaked upon the world these past few days. "It doesn't look like much, but this is it. This small, unassuming restaurant is what I've been looking for.

"Your reign of terror ends now, Dr. Genus!" Zombieman paced forward and pushed the doors open, determined for the fight that was surely about to begin.

Despite being the expert detective, the immortal hero had seldom caught the two henchmen following him up in the sky just as Zombieman had done with Armored Gorilla. Karmath and Orlen hovered down to the ground and stood just inches in front of the restaurant.

"Alright, we found out where these two punks were headed," said Orlen," Now can we finally kill these guys?" Orlen charged up his ki gun and hurriedly sprinted into the store, but just before he could push the doors open, Karmath grabbed him by the shoulder and slung him backward. Orlen shot Karmath an enraged look.

"No! Not yet! We still don't know anything about them!" Karmath, at random, began clicking on his scouter, causing it to beep rapidly as it turned on. "What are you doing?" asked Orlen.

"I'm switching my scouter to surveillance mode," replied Karmath.

Orlen's eyes widened in mild surprise. "You can do that?"

"Yep. It's a pretty handy feature for espionage activities and such. Now be quiet. The scouter needs absolute silence in order to properly pick up the sound waves in the other room." Orlen nodded and quietly tippy-toed his way beside Karmath. The foot soldier's heart was racing with the excitement of what he was about to uncover. With this, their lives were hopefully secured.

* * *

The three scientists were working as ardently as ever in Bofoi's laboratory. Papers were flying everywhere, keys were being vigorously typed so quickly and with so much pressure, they were close to being cracked. The adrenaline was pumping through all of their bodies, fueling their thought process and their vigorous working efficiency. Bofoi's spy drones had picked up some very distressing events: all of the S-class heroes, minus King, for some odd reason, had been taken out by the Devil of Frost. With a great touch of irony, the next one who was fighting Frieza was, in fact, Frieza's henchman and the very individual who had just escaped the holding cell. And thanks to Bofoi's advanced technology integrated in his drones, they were able to accurately capture all of the movements of the ongoing battles.

"Have you finished implementing the binary codes," said Bofoi to Dr. Kuseno.

"Just finished," replied Dr. Kuseno.

"How much time is left before the data upload is completed?" questioned Child Emperor.

"About 98% of the data has been successfully uploaded to the hard-drive."

The three scientists were so busy with their work, none of them noticed Sitch sprinting into the room and rushing up to their side, shouting, "What's going on?! Is this weapon of yours ready?" No response was given to Sitch. The employee ran his hands through his hair in aggravation, and shook the body of Dr. Kuseno to get his attention. The good doctor was momentarily snapped out of his working mode and turned his attention to the nerve-racked man waiting for him.

"IS THE WEAPON READY?!" said Sitch in a practically-shouting tone of voice.

"We're almost there," replied Dr. Kuseno. The doctor clicked on the table surface, and Genos' face appeared as a holographic image on the table. "Genos, have you finished applying the required modifications to the weapon?"

"Yes, doctor," replied Genos.

"Good." Another separate holographic image popped up on the screen, causing Dr. Kuseno to smile with relief. "Yes! The data upload has just finished!

"Alex! Bofoi! We are a-go!" The two genius scientists looked to their fellow scientist and nodded. "Initiate the launching sequence."

"Got it."

The trio sprinted up to the keyboard and all three of them began rapidly typing, occasionally pushing each other as they did. "Put the coordinates in."

"Understood..." Sitch stood behind Bofoi, Dr. Kuseno, and Child Emperor and silently watched them prepare this weapon to be launched. Whatever kind of weapon this was, it must have been a truly powerful object to behold.

A monitor hung up on the wall came to life above the four, and on it, a giant red number appeared: a countdown clock.

"10, 9, 8, 7, 6, 5, 4, 3, 2, 1...

"Launch."

The ground beneath them violently shook, knocking all four of them off balance. Then, a loud, roaring noice reverberated not just in the laboratory, but throughout the entire Hero Association headquarters. Bofoi took control of the keyboard, and switched the security camera lens to show them the weapon that was shooting up in the sky, creating a large cloud of smoke as it did.

"It's finally done..."

* * *

The Super Saiyan of Legend wasn't quite living up to his title on the battlefield. One thousand years after the last seen Super Saiyan, Nappa was honoring the title's legacy by getting his ass completely handed to him by the lizard that exterminated his race and tore whatever remaining pride the Saiyan race had left. In the sky, Frieza's Crazy Finger Beams were still pelting Nappa like a swarm of angry bees.

After about the 1000th Death Beam, Nappa's sturdy body finally wore out, and he began a rapid free-fall to the ground. Frieza smiled as he watched Nappa's broken body fall through the air. Nappa's body cracked the ground below him, and he went out of his Super Saiyan form, the stress too much for him to overcome.

"What a sight to behold..." Frieza flew downward to his defeated opponent. "The Super Saiyan of Legend, standing before me in humiliating defeat. It's like a dream come true." The lizard now stood over Nappa, basking in the self-adulation of his victory.

"It appears that all this time, I was worried over nothing." Frieza pointed his fingers to Nappa's head, a tiny pink glow of energy forming at the tips.

"When you see King Vegeta in Hell, tell him I said: "Like a bitch.""

Hold on. A faint and unusual sound filled Frieza's ears, causing him to halt his killing. Likewise, on the sidelines, Zarbon, Recoome, Guldo, Captain Ginyu, and King picked up this odd anomaly in the sky. They looked up, and on the edge of the horizon, a glowing purple comet was making their way toward them at tremendous speed.

Frieza let out a sigh of exasperation. "Oh god, what is it now?" None of them could tell what it was inside of that purple comet, but they would quickly find out.

Seconds later, the comet whooshed above of King. The strongest man on the planet was blown away by the wind currents and thrown completely off balance. On Frieza's ship, all four spectators were also pushed back by the air pressure from this unknown comet.

The comet changed its trajectory to move more downward, heading directly toward Frieza and the defeated Nappa. When the comet hit the ground, gusts of wind pressure rushed Frieza. the kinetic energy from this comet's velocity spread throughout the ground and caused Frieza's body to shake like a maraca.

"Wait..." Frieza's eyes widened. The purple energy around this comet was beginning to fade, revealing the comet hidden beneath it. Only it wasn't a comet. The hidden thing wasn't even an object. It was a... person.

When Frieza observed this unknown arrival with more detail, he took note of many peculiar oddities of this newcomer. He wore a plain white shirt and black pants. But coursing all throughout him, a purple glow emanated, filling all holes, crevices, and grooves on his body. He moved his eyes up to look at his face. His eyes had purple sclera with fiery orange irises. And the intensity... Frieza could see in this newcomer's eyes such passionate intensity yet cunning ruthlessness at the same time. He almost looked like a villain.

About one hundred miles away, Dr. Kuseno, Child Emperor, and Metal Knight were beaming in pride and awe at the battlefield being taped through Bofoi's drones. Sitch was the only one who had no idea what this meant.

"So where is the weapon?"

All three scientists stared at Sitch with an "Are you fucking kidding me?" kind of look. "What?"

"The weapon. Shouldn't it have arrived by now? All I see is Demon Cyborg with a different appearance."

"Don't you get it?" said Bofoi, "Genos IS the weapon!" Once Sitch's mind put the pieces together, his face changed from confused to amazed, just like the other three scientists. "Wow..."

Back on the battlefield, Frieza's smile had vanished, and the calm, relaxed demeanor was squashed by a serious and cautious disposition.

"You're quite the interesting fellow there. Who are you?"

The air was moist with apprehension. Curiosity dominated the surrounding. Tension wrapped itself around everyone, waiting for an explanation to who this random stranger was. Genos replied with only two words:

"Your death."

* * *

 _Ba-ba-boom! Alas, the mighty Super Saiyan wasn't a match for Third Form Frieza! I never intended for Nappa to become more powerful than Goku as a Super Saiyan on Namek or anything like that. That would have been ridiculous. Unlike the actual DBZ series, I'll make sure to stick to logical events based on the laws of DBZ and OPM._

 _Oh, and N2, good job on guessing who would be Frieza's next opponent. I had already had the idea in mind for quite some time though, so yea. Make sure to leave plenty of reviews, and get ready for the battle of Genos vs. Frieza!_


	23. Without Further Ado

_Chapter 23 is up! Genos versus Frieza is going down, and it's gonna be epic! I think it is fate that this chapter is released on the same day that Goku finally obtains mastery of Ultra Instinct in the release of Dragon Ball Super Episode 129, or maybe not. Anyway, I am happy to report as well that this story has officially reached the 100,000 view marker! So I would just like to take this time to thank all of the loyal viewers who have stood by this story and waited for the updates without a clear schedule, and your reviews really make my day. So without any more delays, here is Chapter 23 folks!_

* * *

"Your death."

Even though his conscious was inside this new body, he still could not believe it this was real. This was what he'd been dreaming about for years: to have the power to eradicate evil . And it was all thanks to one person: Dr. Kuseno.

* * *

 _"Genos, there's something that I've been meaning to tell you, but I wanted to wait until everything was in place so you wouldn't get too anxious."_

 _The eyebrow of the cyborg shot up. "What are you talking about?"_

 _"Let me show you."_

 _Dr. Kuseno and Genos entered a room in Bofoi's laboratory he was not familiar with. The lights were even dimmer in this room than in the main laboratory room. But at the edge of the room, a bright, purple orb of energy the size of a wrecking ball was glowing brightly, shining light on at least half of the room._

 _"What is that?" said Genos, pointing at the giant orb as he spoke._

 _"That is the power source of the space pirate's ship, and the key to limitless power." A voice could be heard at the center of the room. As soon as the voice spoke, the lights above increased their luminosity, causing Genos and Dr. Kuseno to squint. When their eyes adjusted, they saw Bofoi and Alex standing side-by-side, tapping the tabletop, appearing impatient, as was to be expected with the weight of the world resting on their shoulders._

 _"We don't have a lot of time, so let's make this explanation quick," said Bofoi._

 _"Can somebody please tell what's going on?" said Genos on a voice that bordered on shouting._

 _"Genos..." Dr. Kuseno put both his hands on the cyborg's shoulders. "Thanks to the help of my brother and Alex, we've developed something that can surpass even your master in strength"_

 _The last part of the sentence piqued the cyborg's curiosity, and both of his eyebrows shot up while his eyes widened. "You did? What?"_

 _"You see, ever since I created a cybernetic body for you and downloaded the contents of your brain and memory into this new body, I've been trying to find ways to expand upon this technology. After months of brainstorming and tinkering, I came upon an idea: to create a new human body with synthetic tissue so you could live and grow as a real human, instead of completely relying on upgraded parts for increased strength. And it worked; I managed to synthetically create living tissue to form a living body, and combined with the cybernetic augmentations, a new sapient construct was born. A being perfectly balanced with both organic and inorganic material. It took me many years to perfect the technology and integrate living flesh with machinery as one, but this new construct was my first success. Alas, I ran into an unfortunate problem: in order to stabilize the cellular bondage and properly establish a neural system that would smoothly respond to the user's thoughts and human reflexes, I needed a major power source. But no matter where I looked or how hard I tried, there was no power source on Earth that could complete this android body. But as you know, we were visited by those not from Earth…" Dr. Kuseno motioned to his older brother to follow up._

 _Once Bofoi got the message, he cleared his throat and said, "When I was scavenging through the ruins of the fallen spacecraft, I discovered the main power source of the ship. It was cracked, but not irreparable._

 _"As you can see," Bofoi motioned his hand to the same purple orb of energy at the edge of the room, "The damage has been completely repaired. And thanks to the support of my brother and Alex, we were actually able to get it running again."_

 _Alex couldn't keep his excitement contained any longer. "And the best part is…" Alex rapidly typed on the keyboard monitor. A panel opened up from the ground, and rising up was… Genos. Genos gasped. If he had a heart, it would have leapt up to his mouth. There was... another body? They'd made Genos another body? Stricken with curiosity, he proceeded to walk up to the body in fascinated shock, observing this new body in great earnest, admiring all of the details of this new body._

 _"Amazing…" muttered Genos under his breath_

 _"The best part is that we were actually able to reverse engineer the energy source and make it smaller!" Alex spoke in a frantic, excited, and almost shouting tone while Genos continued to admire the new cybernetic body. "Isn't that awesome?!"_

 _"Quite," added Dr. Kuseno, smiling at the boy's fervent enthusiasm. "The three of us spent three days working on your body and manufacturing the orb, with only about 4 hours of sleep at maximum. But it was all worth it in the end. We've made a body beyond anything mankind has ever seen."_

 _Dr. Kuseno shuffled to Genos' side, hoping that Genos would be satisfied with the work, and seeing the awestricken face on the teenage cyborg's body, he was beyond satisfied. "So, are you ready to become the strongest man on Earth?"_

 _So stricken was the cyborg with amazement, he could only give a small nod as a response. Dr. Kuseno's lips curved up into a larger smile._

 _"Excellent. Today is the day that you will achieve your greatest victory. Today, you will be the only hero in human history to defeat a God-level threat single-handedly."_

* * *

This flashback in the mind of Genos had finished. Genos silently spoke to himself under his breath, "I'm going to honor your words, doctor." He took note of the Devil of Frost with great detail, observing his scales, body armor, and cold eyes, comparing it to a reptile. It appears he was even more hideous than he thought.

"Talking to yourself?" said Frieza. "Hardly a good first impression."

Genos narrowed his eyes and met Frieza's stern gaze with a cold, murderous stare. "I'm not here to listen to your quaint humor," replied Genos cuttingly. "Our planet has been preparing for your visit for quite some time, and it was because of the fear of your impending arrival that this new body has been created for me. With it, I will bring an end to the greatest threat this planet has ever seen."

"Oh, you're putting your serious face on? Ooh, we're getting real serious, got to take it really seriously now."

Genos noticed the prisoner's body lying unconscious on the ground. So he had been defeated by this Devil of Frost. He looked behind him, and his eyes widened; all of the S-class heroes, minus King, were lying unconscious on the ground. All of them had been defeated? Every single one of them was laid to waste by this monster? He hadn't expected that. It appeared he'd arrived in the nick of time. He refocused his attention on the matter at hand. "I don't take kind to mockery, and I've enough of your inane dribble."

"Is that so? Well, why don't I-" Frieza's sentence was cut short by the cyborg's fist that planted itself into Frieza's chest. The force sent Frieza hurtling up into the sky in a diagonal direction for a few hundred meters, pushing Frieza far away from the battlefield. Genos jumped up to meet him, clasped his hands together into a single balled fist, and slammed him back down down to the Earth. A huge crater was formed, spanning about 20 meters wide and 30 meters deep. Up in the sky, Genos gazed at both his palms, as if they were illusions and the entire thing was a dream. But despite this, he knew that never, in his wildest dreams, could he have thought this kind of power was attainable. And this was while he was still getting used to his new body. While Genos was hovering midair, Genos bent his knees down, rotated his body downward, and propelled himself down to Frieza.

The Space Emperor was slow to get up. He ran his hand over his face and let out a labored sigh. That punch was rather powerful, although with the new trend that was growing, he supposed he shouldn't been surprised. "How many more goddamn surprises do I have to deal with? This laborious meddling is striking my final nerves..." Frieza pushed himself off of the ground and saw Genos sprinting toward him. But this time, Frieza would be prepared. Frieza blocked the cyborg's punch with his elbow, and attempted to meet all of Genos' punches with his own fists. But with every punch, he could feel his punches being nullified, overpowered by the sheer strength of this cyborg.

"What the..."

"Machine Gun Blows!" Genos decided to elevate the intensity of his punches, and performed his upgraded combo move. It was unbelievable; comparing the strength his speed of his previous Machine Gun Blows and current Machine Gun Blows was like comparing a soldier to an army. There simply weren't any comparisons to make.

Frieza released a burst of energy around him to halt Genos's barrage of punches. It worked, although left him with no damage and only sent him back 10 meters.

"You've got quite the spunk for a youngling like yourself..." Frieza floated up into the air, and Genos quickly followed suit. With this new body, he was able to use the energy from the orb and propel himself upward into the sky through his hands and his feet.

Genos was thinking to himself, internally going through the plethora new weapons he now had available. One of the available options caught his attention: energy beams. Genos channeled the energy from the orb and brought it to his palms. The cyborg held out his palms toward Frieza and allowed the energy to be released.

Genos didn't know what to expect, but he certainly didn't expect this: a purple beam of energy with an orange outline burst forth from his palms, and ignited the entire sky.

"What?!" shouted Frieza. Frieza hadn't been prepared for such a large energy blast, and in an instant, he was sent flying back into the ground. The entire canyon range was blown up in a fiery explosion. The force of the explosion was large enough that even several hundred meters away, both Frieza's ship and the spectators were rocked in their spots.

The spectators covered their eyes from the blinding light.

"Who is that?" said Recoome.

"I have no idea," replied Guldo. "But whoever he is, he's goddamn tough."

"You've got that right, Guldo," said Recoome.

"Where do these warriors come from?" said a baffled Captain Ginyu. "Every single one has been able to match and even best Lord Frieza's changing forms. It's unbelievable!"

Back in the sky, the light was beginning to fade, and the scene was coming into view. Hovering in the sky, Genos still had his hands extended outward from his energy blast. So this was the destructive power now laying within him; he hadn't meant to release such a large burst of energy. To know an ordinary blast like that could create such devastation was unbelievable. Saitama would HAVE to take him seriously now. In fact, he probably SURPASSED his master now. And now that Genos had taken care of the threat, he'd challenge Saitama once again. The battle had to have been over; no one could survive a blast like that.

"Well well well..." Genos let out a slight gasp; floating just a few feet above the ground, Frieza glanced at Genos with an irate demeanor. His body was still covered in white smoke from the blast; his arms were in a crossed position to defend himself, but they were now covered with several bruises and scratches. "That was something. I'm not going to lie, that actually hurt, just a bit."

Frieza flew up to Genos, and now faced Genos with only a few feet of distance between them. "But I wouldn't let that go to my head. Every one of your pitiful acquaintances attempted to fight me all at once, and look what happened to them. Even the Legendary Super Saiyan, the warrior of untold might who appeared every 1,000 years, was but a mere inconvenience to me in the grand scheme of things. So what hope do you have of stopping me?"

The energy from the orb came to life, enveloping Genos like a purple aura. Genos' face scrunched in anger, and his unmitigated fury against all things evil was amplified by this new and improved bio-mechanical body. "You're wrong. Thanks to the efforts of the greatest scientific minds on this planet, what you see before you is the perfect combination of organic flesh and mechanical engineering. Using the energy source from the Space Pirates, I am now the strongest hero on this planet. Not even a god-level threat like you can stand up to me now." This utmost confidence was uncanny for Genos, but he couldn't help it. The power was getting to him.

"Keep telling yourself that." Frieza struck Genos, and the two of them disappeared instantaneously. Like the battle before, none of the spectators could see what was going on, and like before, the only proof of the ongoing battle was the intense bursts of air pressure originating from the warriors' fists colliding in the air.

As the two fighters were exchanging blows, Frieza performed a midair front-flip and slammed Genos with his tail. Genos caught his tail before it hit him, and kicked Frieza in his back with his foot. Genos followed up and struck Frieza's head with his elbow. Frieza let out a groan of pain and was sent flying to the ground. But Frieza quickly stopped himself and fired a barrage of Death Beams up at Genos. Genos met his Death Beams with an incineration cannon, which managed to dissipate the Death Beams entirely. Frieza soared back up to the sky and struck Genos in the gut with his very long head.

"An illogical move," said Genos coldly. At first, Frieza didn't see what he meant by that, but he was quickly made to understand the error when Genos grabbed the top of his head. Frieza tried to break free of the grip, but Genos' grip was like iron, and his arms couldn't reach Genos to strike him. Genos began to spin Frieza, gradually gaining speed until he looked like a giant purple spinning wheel. After spinning Frieza around at such intense speed for 5 seconds, Genos finally let go of his grip on him and sent him falling like a comet from space. Another crater was formed to go along with the many craters formed from the previous and ongoing battles. The cyborg flew back to the ground, standing above Frieza, whose large head was planted in the ground, leaving the rest of his body in an upside down position.

"Look at your position. How embarrassing."

"Fuck. Off!" Frieza's tail wrapped around Genos' wrist, taking him by surprise. Before he knew it, Genos was being twirled around in the air just as he had done to Frieza moments ago. After multiple twirls, Frieza began bashing Genos on the ground back and forth.

"Enough!" The purple aura from Genos sparked to life again. A large blade popped out of Genos' elbow, with a light orange outline of heat. With a mighty thrust, Genos swung his arm down and sliced Frieza's tail off. The Space Emperor let out a short but pain-ridden scream as he felt the hot steel from the cyborg's blade stinging his severed tail.

Frieza planted his hands on the ground and unlodged his long head from the ground. He took a look at the stump of his tail, and his fury skyrocketed. Veins on his forehead throbbed, and his hands balled into fists.

"How dare you..."

Genos lunged for Frieza, but a burst of energy was released from Frieza's body. A bright white aura enveloped him as he took control of his anger and wielded it like a weapon, causing Genos to recoil backward.

"YOU'LL PAY FOR THAT!" This time, it was Frieza who initiated the attack. Genos put his hands up in defensive position and proceeded to dodge and block Frieza's strikes. While Frieza was attacking, Genos could hear him grunting in anger, clearly frustrated with the high skill Genos was displaying. Frieza kicked Genos in the chin with his foot, sending him flying in the air. Frieza grabbed Genos' leg, and swirled him around to throw him off balance. He threw Genos into a valley of rocks, destroying the valley in the process. Genos instantly bounded back up to Frieza and swung his arm blade, but Frieza elbowed him in the face before he had the chance to counter. Frieza grabbed the blade and broke it in half. He then held onto the blade and stabbed Genos in the head with it. But before the blade could reach his cranium, Genos caught the blade and swatted it out of Frieza's hand. Suddenly, a bright glow came to life at Genos' center chest. Frieza's eyes widened; from his chest, a surge of purple energy burst forth and enveloped Frieza. This energy attack was much shorter, lasting only half-a-second; Frieza quickly snapped out of the trauma from the blast and resumed his attack on Genos. But even with his increased power, Genos was somehow able to outmaneuver Frieza at every turn.

"How pathetic..." Genos calmly thrashed Frieza, taking advantage of his overwhelmingly obvious weakness: his added bulk. His body was very disproportionate, and the added bulk on his shoulders and head made it harder for Frieza to properly track Genos. Had Frieza been fighting a weaker opponent, his strength and speed would make this weakness irrelevant, but Genos was not a weak opponent, and thanks to his enhanced body and analytical thinking, he would able to defeat this overgrown lizard by expertly exploiting his weaknesses.

"Stand still, you brat!" In the air, Frieza's head was spinning as he tried to beat Genos down with little success. He was being made a fool by a mere child! He would not stand for this!

So to end the humiliating beating, Frieza unleashed a burst of energy around him that spanned in all directions, forcing Genos to fly out of Frieza's vicinity.

"This ends now!" The Space Emperor clasped both his hands together, and formed a ball of red energy at his palms. Frieza formed a sadistic smile and shouted to Genos, "You're powerful, but let's see you handle this!"

Genos wasn't intimidated; with this new bodyNo monster could stand up to him now. The cyborg channeled the energy from the orb into his palms as he did before to stand up to Frieza's energy beam. His palm began to glow a bright purple, and a small ball of energy formed out of it. Both warriors continued to charge their respective attacks, with short bolts of electricity flying out of the energy and growing more volatile by the second.

"DIE!"

* * *

Bofoi's laboratory was eerie and quiet. Unlike before, with its hustle and bustle, the scientists were now silently watching the battle between Genos and the Devil of Frost, and they couldn't believe it. As Genos adapted to his new body, he only became more powerful and gained greater control over his new powers.

"Amazing..." Minister Sitch was viewing the battle alongside the three scientists, and like them, he was baffled by the power Demon Cyborg had displayed. He'd never seen any hero of the Hero Association demonstrate such extensive destructive abilities coupled with so many unique abilities. "You three really outdid yourselves," said Sitch, staring at the three scientists and feeling glad that they were on the side of the Hero Association.

"We really did, didn't we?" replied Child Emperor, glowing with confidence. "Looks like this is about to be wrapped up rather quickly."

"At this rate, Saitama won't even be needed," added Bofoi, replicating the confidence of his former assistant.

"Uh, Metal Knight, Minister Sitch!" The intercom buzzed on the wall, interrupting their conversation. "One Punch Man has just arrived."

"Well, speak of the Devil and he shall appear," said Bofoi. "Alright, bring him down."

"I'm already here!"

The four of them turned around to see Saitama standing at the door with his arm resting against the door frame and his back slightly arched. His uniform had a few splotches of dirt and blood, and he was actually panting, which was rare to see from an S-class hero.

Sitch was the first to speak. "Saitama! Where have you been?"

"And why are you panting?" questioned Dr. Kuseno.

"Look, I've had to kill about 200 monsters on my way here, and I had to run ALL the way from Z-City to A-City, which is basically about a continent apart. So excuse the hell out of me if I'm a little out of breath." Saitama's attention quickly diverted from the doctors to the image on the monitor.

"Is that Genos?"

"Yes indeed," replied Dr. Kuseno.

Saitama put his hands to his hips. Did they give him another set of upgrades? It had taken a second for Saitama to recognize him. "Why does he look different?"

"He's in a new body we developed," replied Child Emperor, "He's actually able to overpower the Devil of Frost!

"Unfortunately," added Sitch, "All the other S-class heroes who fought him have been knocked out!"

"Seriously?" said Saitama with a surprised voice. When Saitama spoke now, the labored breathing had disappeared. It had taken only minutes, perhaps even seconds, for his body to recover. The scientists noticed this, but were not as surprised as the should have been. With all the intense and earth-shattering events that had transpired, this was basically the norm now.

"He looks like a badass," said Saitama in awe.

"He does indeed," replied Bofoi, smirking with pride. "He does indeed."

* * *

Frieza released his energy blast, and with it, an enormous surge of wind current. The beam quickly made its way toward the cyborg, who was still charging his energy beam. His eyes were laser-focused, and his concentration was invested entirely on his blast. For this would be the finishing blow.

"Ultimate Incineration Cannon."

What was unleashed from the teenage cyborg was a monstrous burst of power with a swirling torrent of orange flame and purple energy. When the two beams made contact, an intense struggle commenced for dominance. But in mere seconds, the cyborg's attack proved to be stronger than the lizards, and the Space Emperor quickly came to know the opposing energy blast's warmth.

The entire valley trembled uncontrollably. The bedrock underneath which was already fractured was now split up into millions of tiny cracked pieces. The quaking was so powerful, the entirety of City A began to shake, causing civilians to fall off their feet and the foundations of some of the buildings to crack.

The Ginyu Force and the other spectators saw the spectacle from afar, and were once again shocked by the newcomer's awesome power. Yet again, Lord Frieza had been overwhelmed by his opponent's power.

Guldo, Recoome, and Captain Ginyu were shivering nervously.

"Is it over?"

"Recoome doesn't believe it!"

"No, not again!"

Their fears were quickly put to rest, and each of them sighed a breath of relief when they saw Frieza still standing, albeit not in his best shape. Almost all of the spikes on Frieza's body had been chipped off. All over him, scratches and wounds were present, just like his scuffle with Nappa. His hands were aching from his attempt to block the cyborg's attack, and his breathing was labored.

"WHY YOU..."

This battle is over," shouted Genos. "With your bulky frame, your mobility has been significantly hindered. You cannot win!"

But what Frieza did next caught Genos off guard; he began maniacally laughing. He continued this laughing for a few seconds, and before Genos could ask him why he began a laughing fit, Frieza already gave him an answer.

"Ah, you pathetic boy! I have to admit, you're much more powerful than I would have expected from this pathetic mudball. If this was the limit of my power, then you would indeed be correct in your assertion of victory. But unfortunately for you, the mighty Lord Frieza still has a final trick up his sleeve! If you had been here with your heroic little friends, you would have realized that I have the unique ability to transform."

"What?!" shouted Genos.

"This little merry-go-round of new fighters with superior power has become rather vexatious for me, but at least you will be the final spectator to witness one final vision more terrifying than death! Lo and behold, my true, ultimate form!"

The Space Emperor clenched his fists together and bent forward as the final releases of restraint came undone. The ground underneath began to crack, and in the sky, white clouds turned into obsidian veil of death that crowded around their master. His entire body began to glow bright red, just as his first transformation.

On the sidelines, Captain Ginyu was giggling and tingling with delight.

"Captain?"

"What's so amusing!"

"We're about to witness Lord Frieza in his ultimate form! This is the greatest honor we could be given! That little punk doesn't stand a chance!"

On the ground, King silently and fearfully watched as Frieza underwent his final transformation. Where was Saitama?! The world needed him now more than ever!

"Ughhhh..." King turned around, and let out a gasp of delight; the heroes were starting to wake up! "That's great!"

"My head..." Tatsumaki moaned in pain and proceeded to rub her head. Beside her, Atomic Samurai, Bang, Bomb, Superalloy Darkshine, Garou, and Metal Bat gradually got up from their spots and pushed themselves off of the ground.

"What happened?" said Garou.

"Frieza beat all of you to a bloody pulp. Then, one of the ape prisoners arrived and fought Frieza. The two did battle, then Frieza underwent another transformation. Now, Genos is fighting him and actually winning!"

Metal Bat gave Ming a skeptical look. "I still don't see why you haven't foug-"

A loud roar from Frieza cut Metal Bat off, and they all looked across the valley to see Frieza covered in an aura of energy.

"What's he doing," said Bang.

"He's undergoing, according to him, his ultimate transformation!"

"Well I'm not gonna just sit around like a chicken," shouted Tatsumaki. "I'm going back in there!"

"Don't be a fool," said Bomb. "Frieza tossed us aside like garbage in his second form! In your weakened state and his new transformation, it wouldn't even be a battle."

"Bomb is right," said Bang, "All any of us can do now is have faith that Genos can defeat Frieza."

Beads of sweat began to fall down the cyborg's face as he watched this monster undergo his transformation. Whether or not this Devil of Frost could transform or not, his energy sensors were detecting a very high boost in power. If he allowed Frieza to finish this power boost, the consequences could be dire.

"I have to put an end to this now, before this monster can wreak any more havoc!" The teenage cyborg channeled the energy from the orb into his chest and concentrated. He felt the raw, overwhelming flow of power surge through him, giving him new life and even more confidence. With this attack, the Devil of Frost would be eliminated.

"Genos! Come in, Genos!"

Dr. Kuseno's voice resonated in his ears, and an image of him appeared in his line of sight.

"What is it, doctor! I'm in the middle of preparing my final attack!" said Genos with an irritated tone.

"Yo Genos!"

To his surprise, his master popped up on the screen beside the good doctor.

"Master! You finally made it to A-City!"

"Yea, and I gotta say, you are looking pretty cool."

"Thank you, master! I've managed to put the Devil of Frost in a corner, and I'm just about to finish him off."

"No!" This remark confused Genos. "Master?"

"Just wait for me to get there! I want a taste of the action! This might be what I've been looking for. Don't do anything! I'll be right there!" Saitama turned the screen and left Genos alone.

"I'm sorry master, but I'm not taking any chances. The risks are too great." The cyborg resumed charging his final attack. His chest began to glow a bright purple once again, and a purple aura flickered to life around him.

On the ground, a bright white surge of energy bolted up to the sky from Frieza. Both power-ups were creating another intense pressure that enveloped itself around anyone who was unfortunate enough to be in its vacinity.

"Ultra Spiral Incinerate!" The cyborg's chest cannon burst out of him with unbelievable force and sped through the sky toward its target. But unfortunately for the cyborg, it was too late; as Frieza unleashed the final level of his unimaginable power, a gargantuan explosion of unbalanced white energy surged forth. Unlike the beam struggle before, Genos' incineration Cannon was the blast that was overwhelmed and dissipated into nothingness. Somehow, Frieza's transformation warped the very fabric of space itself, for when Frieza completed his transformation, the entire sky became as black as the night sky with small white particles, giving the illusion that outer space had wrapped itself around Frieza.

Genos clenched his fists in anger, and shook his head vigorously. "No! I was too late! That monster has unleashed his most devastating power, and I let it happen. Just like..." The memories of his disgraceful demise at the hands of Mosquito Girl flashed in his mind. Would history repeat itself today? Was he destined to be defeated yet again?

"Absolutely not!" The passionate and goal-driven side of the cybernetic teenager overcame the internal doubt churning within him. With the power of this body, Genos could beat any foe that dare follow the path of evil. He had to! He owed it to his master and to himself, which was why he was prepared to singlehandedly take on Frieza and reign victorious.

The black sky quickly receded and made way for a clear sky, but Frieza was still hidden by a wall of white smoke. Genos tensed hisbody and held his arms up in preparation for what was to come. He was ready!

The white smoke gradually began to fade, revealing the hidden secret behind it. Now, Genos didn't quite know what to expect from the Devil of Frost's final form, but he imagined it would be something along the lines of an even larger beast with even more hideous features. What he was witnessing now was a sleek, white and scrawny lizard with a tiny body that couldn't have been taller than 5 feet. Likewise, the spectating heroes were befuddled by Frieza's new appearance.

"Is that it?" said Metal Bat. "He looks like a tiny wimp."

You idiot!" Bang hit the young boy hard on the head, eliciting a growl from him. "You should know by now this monster's power has absolutely nothing to do with his appearance. I can't even imagine the strength now vesseled in that hideous body."

Up in the sky, Genos continued to observe Frieza. Looking away from his small frame, Genos realized that Frieza's tail had actually grown back. And not only that, but all of the damage he had received earlier had vanished; there wasn't a single scratch on him! While his small body was misleading, Genos had no doubt that his previous form must have been tame compared to this.

Frieza pointed his finger up toward Genos and stared straight into the teenager's eyes with those cold, calculating, hardened eyes.

"Bang."

Before the teenager even realized Frieza had uttered that word, he was pelted directly in his chest with a red finger beam. The beam exploded upon contact, creating a black cloud of smoke that spanned several meters in diameter. Quickly clearing, Genos was revealed to now have a huge mark upon his chest, and his face distorted in shock and disbelief. Genos couldn't believe it; he didn't even have any reaction time to dodge or block the attack. It was instantaneous!

"What in the hell have you become?!" shouted Genos.

The Space Emperor disappeared from the cyborg's view. He frantically looked across the valley to find him, but he didn't need to. Whispering in his ear, Frieza uttered, "Death."

Genos angrily turned around and attempted to strike Frieza with a spinning kick, but Frieza effortlessly caught his leg. Genos grappled out of his grasp and prepared another attack.

"Machine Gun Blows!" Genos threw a chain of lightning-fast punches at Frieza, yet Frieza dodged every single one of his punches with a neutral face, like he wasn't even trying. How?!

"It won't work this time." Frieza jabbed Genos in the gut, causing him to let out a grunt of pain and be sent back several meters. Genos focused his energy on his rocket boosters to increase his speed.

"Jet Drive Arrow!"

Using the blades in his feet to form an arrow, Genos blasted forth and prepared to fatally stab Frieza. The Devil of Frost was not amused; using stealthy movement, Frieza expertly grabbed Genos' leg and, using the cyborg's momentum, changed his trajectory from sideways to downwards. Frieza then followed up with a barrage of finger beams which Genos simply couldn't evade. Each beam felt like a knife stabbing through him, compared to before, when they merely felt like tiny mosquito bites at best. The increase in power was unreal. Genos placed his palms upward and fired another incineration blast, hoping it would have some effect. It didn't; Frieza swatted the incineration blast like he would swat a common housefly.

"What was that you were saying before? I didn't have a chance?" Frieza appeared behind Genos and proceeded to pummel him like a punching bag. Genos tried to match his punches, to effectively counter Frieza's movements, but it wasn't working. No matter how much he tried, Genos couldn't even land a single hit on his opponent. "I didn't think you were capable of such humor with such a serious demeanor. You really had me going there."

Frieza was now just toying with Genos. The cyborg was no longer a match for him, and both of them knew it. This match was his.

"I've failed you, master. I've failed you, and I've failed myself. I'm sorry."

"Aw, is the little baby about to cry," said Frieza, "Well then, let me tell you a tale to make you feel better." Frieza kicked Genos up into the air, and slammed him back down to the ground with his tail.

"The end."

The cyborg fell to the ground, motionless as he laid defeated. The Space Emperor calmly strode over to his side and looked down on him both figuratively and literally. "As entertaining a punching bag you are, I find there to be no more entertainment found here. Let's end this once and for all." Frieza lifted his foot up and placed it over the teenage cyborg's head.

"Have a nice trip to hell."

Frieza stomped his foot down and crushed... dirt. The Space Emperor's eyes widened in surprise. Where the hell did he go? He was right there, but now he wasn't.

Fluttering. Frieza's ears picked up on the sound of something fluttering in the wind. He turned his head to see where this fluttering noise was coming from, and he had to say, he wasn't expecting this. Genos was now cradled in a man's arms. The man had a yellow jumpsuit with red gloves and red boots, and his head was completely devoid of hair.

"Another newcomer? Honestly, this planet is positively crawling with pests." The newcomer gave no response.

The heroes squinted to see who had just arrived, and when they realized who it was, most of them gasped. Some gave scowls, others gave disappointed looks as they knew the newcomer's fate already, but a few, King in particular, were utterly ecstatic and brimming with new life. "He's actually here," said King with a dazed tone of voice.

In his arms, Genos slowly opened his eyes to look upon his savior, and when he did, his heart melted in utter relief.

"Master..."

"Hey there, Genos. You look pretty banged up."

The cyborg grunted in agreement. "I couldn't stop him. He was too strong..."

"Well, you did good managing by yourself for this long. Give yourself a pat on the back."

"Excuse me!" Saitama turned his head around to see an irritated, tiny lizard staring at him with squinted eyes and crossed arms. "I'm in the middle of something! If you want to wait your turn to die like the rest of these vermin, then take a number!"

"Wait wait wait..." Saitama put Genos on the ground and turned his body completely to face this tiny lizard. "Are you that Freezer guy everybody's been talking about?"

Frieza's angry face changed to that of confusion. "I am Lord Frieza, yes. And who are you?"

"The name's Saitama, and I'm a hero for fun. I've been waiting for a good fight for a long time, and I gotta tell you, ya don't really-"

"Hold it right there, baldy."

A voice rung out in the air. That voice wasn't Saitama's, or Frieza's, or even Genos', but it was someone really close. Who was it? Who else had arrived? Saitama and Frieza looked around to see who had just spoken, and after a few seconds of searching, found the guy they were looking for standing on top of a ledge. It was a man with spiky black hair and a suit very similar to that of Saitama, with a few notable differences. Unlike Saitama's suit, this man's jumpsuit was black with a fiery contour around the zipper at his neckline. Yet like Saitama, he has a snow-white cape that fluttered in the afternoon wind. In a lot of ways, he actually looked like Saitama before losing his hair. Saitama took this in with curiosity.

The heroes noticed this OTHER newcomer's presence, but couldn't distinguish who it was.

"Do you know who that is?" said Atomic Samurai.

"I have no idea," said Superalloy Darkshine.

"What's that person doing here? Doesn't he know this place is dangerous?" stated King. "Tornado, do you recognize that person?"

The esper gave no response.

"Tornado!"

Everyone looked to see why Tornado wasn't responding, and realized that she was completely frozen. Her body was shaking like a leaf, yet she was frozen at the same time. The esper's eyes began to water, and for the first time, she actually seemed to have a genuine smile. "Who is that?!" said Garou.

"It's Bl-Bl-Bll-Bl"

"The name's Blast, and I'm here to kick your ass."

* * *

 _HOLY SHIT! IT'S FINALLY HAPPENING! SAITAMA'S FINALLY ARRIVED! Now, let's face it; everybody knew Saitama would come in and save Genos' ass, but was anybody expecting Blast to come in out of nowhere? I THINK NOT! After all that waiting and waiting and waiting, the moment you've all been waiting for has FINALLY arrived. To say shit is going down would be the understatement of the century. So leave your reviews of hype and excitement; I'm happy to read them. Time probably can't feel any slower as you wait for the next chapter of The Space Emperor's Besiege!_


	24. Concursus Titanis

_Chapter 24 is finally up! The beginning of the most anticipated battle in this story is about to commence! For some of you, you've waited countless months for the moment when Frieza and Saitama face off, and now it's here! Let's hope it's everything you ever wanted! Now enough jibber jabber! Let's just get it on!_

* * *

"The name's Blast, and I'm here to kick your ass."

Genos gasped. That was the S-class Rank 1 hero Blast?! Genos had always pondered where or who this unknown hero really was, but if he was here, that only accentuated the gravity of the monster facing them right now. Likewise, all the heroes were letting out gasps of amazement, as only one of them had ever seen this man in person.

"BLAST!" The S-class hero turned his head and saw a familiar face flying toward him. The face of a little girl he saved many years ago. But he didn't expect that little girl to stay a little girl, and he certainly didn't expect for her to come running into his arms like a scene from a romantic movie reunion scene. All of the heroes' jaws dropped to the floor; Tornado actually showing an emotion other than bitchiness? It must have been a dream! Well, if they had truly known about Tatsumaki's past, they would have known Blast was the one who had saved her life and was the one who convinced her to become a hero, but was the one who taught her to stay strong, even in the darkest of times. He was one of the only people, besides Fubuki, that she actually cared about.

"You came back!" said Tatsumaki through watery eyes and sniffles.

"Uh-huh..." Blast uncomfortably patted Tatsumaki on the back.

"It's been years since I last saw you," said Tatsumaki, "Where have you been?"

"You know, just here and there, travellin around the country, chillaxing. The regular stuff."

"I'm being really polite allowing you to have this conversation," said Frieza.

"True, true," replied Saitama. Frieza gave Saitama a confused glare. The Space Emperor's patience was close to its limit. He didn't know how much more he could take of this or why he was even waiting for this little reunion to end. It was unbearable!

"Blast, is it?" said Frieza. "Quite a cute little name. Are you two related by blood?"

Blast and Saitama looked at each other with blank stares and shrugged their shoulders. "I've never seen this guy in my life." said both of them simultaneously.

"Then what's the deal with the somewhat matching uniforms?"

"Luck, I guess?" said Blast. "I work for the Hero Association as the top-ranked hero in the top-ranked class, so this is just my hero suit" said Blast. Saitama let out a faint gasp of surprise. "Really? You're the S-class Rank 1 hero that never comes to the S-class meetings?"

"That's right," replied Blast. "And you are?"

"My name is Saitama, and I'm a hero who's actually employed with the Hero Association too. I'm S-class Rank 4."

"That's pretty impressive," said Blast with a tone of approval in his voice, "You must be the real de-"

"EXCUSE ME!" Frieza's irritated voice cut off Saitama and Blast's conversation. "I'm sorry to put a pause on your little get-together, but unlike you two, I literally have a thousand better things to do, so which of you two wonder twins is going to fight me?"

Tatsumaki snarled. "DON'T YOU DARE TALK TO BLAST THAT W-" Tornado's sentence was cut off as she felt herself trapped in a psychic imprisonment ball. She tried to break free, but it was no use. She shivered in terror; could he really have psychic abilities that were this powerful? Combined with his super strength, super speed, and energy projection, this just... wasn't fair. With a flick of his fingers, Tatsumaki was sent flying back yet again as the trash she had been deemed by Frieza. She yelled out in pain when she felt the rock scrape her backside, and she just barely had enough energy to keep herself from falling to the ground. "Damn it..." Tatsumaki grasped her arm and weakly trudged over to the rest of the heroes, accepting her place in this battle like they already had.

"She wasn't even fighting," said Blast, "That wasn't fair."

"Who cares? As I was saying," continued Frieza, "How are you going to decide?"

"I dunno," replied Saitama.

"How about Rock-Paper-Scissors?" suggested Blast.

"Why not?" Blast jumped off the boulder and walked up to Saitama. The two of them shook their arms three times, and shot out their hands. To his utter annoyance and enragement, it was Blast who reigned supreme over Saitama, his rock crushing Saitama's scissors. The Number 1 S-class hero pumped his fist in pleasure, and shortly after, turned around to face the God-level monster.

"So you're next in the lineup?" said Frieza, "Well, are you ready to get your world rocked?"

"Heh-heh." Blast cracked his knuckles against each other and twisted his neck to create the sound of bones cracking, making himself appear even more badass. "The better question is: are you ready for a blast from the past?"

"I've never met you before. That line doesn't work there."

Blast's smirk faltered, and he let out a series of sputtering noises. "Whatever! Get ready for the fuck mothering pain!" Blast jumped off the ground and lunged for his newest opponent. The Space Pirates and S-class heroes couldn't help but be a bit excited and interested about the way this legendary battle would unfold.

"Go Blast!" shouted Tatsumaki.

The S-class hero landed a powerful right hook across Frieza's face, sending a few gasps throughout the crowd of spectators and eliciting a smile of glee and confidence from Blast and Tatsumaki.

"Yes! A direct hit!" thought Blast. The power from Blast's punch was quite impressive. Well, so they thought. But every spectator felt their hearts pump up to their mouth when they saw Frieza stare at Blast like all he felt was a love tap.

Amidst the wall of silence, the Space Emperor was the first to break through it. "Well, that answers that question."

"What..." Before Blast could inquire as to what Frieza meant, he was promptly greeted with a hard foot to his face. The hero was sent crashing into a boulder, and was quickly buried under a pile of rubble.

The seconds went by, and everyone was waiting for Blast to rise up from the rubble and shake off the attack like it was nothing. But it never happened. Everyone was stunned speechless.

"This is a joke, right?" said Saitama. "Come on, Blast! We get the joke! Very funny! Now stop faking a knockout and get your ass off of the ground! I wanna fight too!" Not even a pebble tumbled out of place.

"This can't be serious," spoke Frieza, "You're telling me that the number one ranked hero on your planet, a lone wolf who hasn't been seen for years and whose power is basically subject to rumor, is knocked out after a single kick to the head?"

"Apparently so..." replied Saitama.

"Wow..." Honestly, Frieza wasn't sure whether he should be laughing or crying. "Now I know how gamers who bought the Wii U felt."

"Uhh, how do you know about-"

"Space Nintendo."

"Weird."

On the ground, the teenage cyborg was in shock just like everyone else. He had expected a legendary battle between Blast and Frieza, but the number 1 hero in the association was now lying under a pile of rubble. And the only one left to fight this monster now was Master Saitama. There was no way Genos would allow that to be the case!

"But on the slightly brighter side, at least it's my turn now," said Saitama.

Frieza let out a hardy laugh. "Oh please! You?! If the #1 S-class hero couldn't even take a single hit, than how can his stupid-looking reject twin do any better?"

The next sentences they uttered were spoken simultaneously.

"Hey! Watch who you're calling stupid-looking! I mean, look at yourself! With that big head, those weird lips, and those two holes you have ears!"

"I mean, look at you, with that bald head, that derpy-looking face, those non-matching colors!"

Once both of them finished their string of insults, they gave one another nasty looks.

"What the hell did you say?!" shouted both of them at the same time. Both of them disappeared from sight for a brief moment, then reappeared, their fists colliding with one another in a violent burst of rage. As soon as their fists collided, a huge gust of wind and pressure was released, with this power cracking the ground below them like the battles before, and the level of power shocking everyone who was watching. The clash ended as quickly as it started, and both warriors rebounded several feet away from each other. The Space Emperor gripped his hand and let out a slight wince of pain. "Damn," said Frieza, "You've got quite some power behind your punches."

"Thanks," replied Saitama. "With that attack, I can say you're kinda strong. Usually most monsters I fight end up dying after the first punch, so you're definitely no pushover either. But it's too early to tell..."

"Wait..." Getting a glimpse of Saitama's power reminded Frieza of the description Vegeta gave of the warrior that defeated him and Nappa, and when he put the pieces together in his brain, he let out a gasp.

"It's you! You're the one who not only defeated Boros singlehandedly, but took down Vegeta and Nappa like they were just foot soldiers!"

"Uh-huh. That'd be me."

At last, Frieza's search finally bore fruit. "Defeating someone as powerful as Boros is no easy task. And now that I've gotten just a taste of your strength, I can truly comprehend the grandiose might hidden behind your misleading appearance and how you could have defeated such powerful beings so easily." The Space Emperor loosened his body and pointed his finger up toward Saitama. "My entire ulterior motive for transversing to such a deep breach of the cosmos was to ensure you were dealt with in one of two ways: you join my side, or you die by my side." Frieza paced up toward Saitama and stared at him with a steely yet lax gaze in his eyes, as if this was merely a business transaction between two different parties. "So I give you the choice now: join me, and you could live like a god."

Saitama didn't even bat an eye. "Don't think so. I'm not here to be a part of your little group. I've been invited to far too many groups. I'm just here to kick your ass. Now enough talk! Let's get it on!"

The S-class hero's disciple pushed himself off of the ground and took a fighting stance. He had spent the time on the ground focusing his energy on regeneration and to reboot his systems, and now he had recovered enough to assist his master in this battle. "Master, I will fight alongside you."

Saitama chopped his hand through the air in a single swipe. "No."

"Master?"

"You're too banged up. I'll fight him alone," said Saitama.

"But Master..."

"No buts! Go watch with the other heroes. I'll be fine."

The teenage cyborg hesistated for a second, but decided to follow his master's wishes. "Yes master!" He gave a quick bow to his master and flew off to join the spectating S-class heroes. When he reached the group of spectators, they greeted him with a few pats on the back, although some didn't even look at him in the eye and crossed their arms with a defiant huff.

"You were amazing," said Puri-Puri-Prisoner.

"Quite an admirable battle," spoke Bang.

"How did you get so strong?" said King. Genos turned his head to face King, and squinted his eyes. An uncomfortable tension stirred up inside King; why was Genos looking at him like that?

Shortly after, Genos stopped the squinting and replied, "Bofoi, his brother, and Child Emperor created a new body for me using the energy source from the alien spaceship that came to Earth."

"I see..." said Bang.

"Hold on a second!" said Atomic Samurai, "What are we gonna do about the Caped Baldy?! There's no way he can take this monster on alone!"

"His name is Saitama!" angrily replied Genos, "And my master can handle himself!" Genos said this with confidence, but in his heart, he wasn't quite sure. Frieza had power unlike anything he had ever witnessed before, possessing strength and speed that made warriors like Carnage Kabuto look like Wolf-level threats. Saitama would HAVE to acknowledge this strength, and perhaps, just perhaps, he would get the fight he yearned for.

Frieza condescendingly smirked. "Sending your friend off to fight me all alone. How gutless."

Saitama gave Frieza a quizzical look. "Wait, how is that gutless?"

"Because... suicide is the coward's way out."

In an unexpected twist, Saitama actually let out a laugh of amusement. "That's a good one!" said Saitama, "You're actually pretty funny!"

Frieza bashfully shrugged his shoulders. "Well, I try."

"You keep that up, and maybe that'll make this battle even more fun."

"Well then, let the fight commence."

Both warriors lunged for each other yet again, and with that, the most historic battle the planet would ever see had begun.

* * *

"Your reign of terror ends now, Dr. Genus!"

Armored Gorilla was standing behind the counter, putting away dirty plates and preparing to start the dishwasher, barely acknowledging this newcomer's existence. "Oh, are you a customer?" he said, "Just give me one moment, I'm washing dirty dishes."

The newcomer scoffed. "How many times have you switched your hideout locations? So this time, you've decided to select an unassuming Tako-yaki stand for your disguise? Such an obvious and stupid ploy will not work on me. I've followed your trail; you can't fool me." The newcomer grabbed a pocket in his coat and pulled out a Desert Eagle. "I go now by the name of Zombieman... The hero with the immortal body. Does Experiment Sample No. 66 ring any bell?"

Outside of the food stand, Karmath's eyes widened to the size of saucers, and his heart jumped up in delight. His partner noticed this, and he tapped his shoulder to get his attention. "Karmath! What's with that grin?"

"That guy we were tracking... He's immortal." Karmath found it hard to keep his voice down. Orlen gasped. "He's immortal?!"

Karmath held his hand out to silence his partner. "Quiet! I need to hear this!"

"Eh, a hero who came form the House of Evolution?" said Armored Gorilla, "Sorry to tell you this, but the House of Evolution has been disbanded."

Zombieman's jaw dropped down. "What?!"

Armored Gorilla stepped out of the counter and opened another door to his right. "If you're interested in speaking to Dr. Genus, allow me to take you to him. He is right through this door."

Zombieman's grip on his gun didn't loosen, but he hesitantly followed Armored Gorilla's directions and walked through the door.

"Dr. Genus, you have a visitor," said Armored Gorilla. Sitting on the floor with a cup of tea (which ironically had illustrations of the line of evolution of mankind) in his hand, Dr. Genus stared up to meet this new visitor. "Ah, it's you," spoke Dr. Genus.

"What's going on here?" said Zombieman. "What game are you playing?"

"Please, have a seat." Dr. Genus motioned Zombieman to take a seat, to which he did, albeit reluctantly. Dr. Genus grabbed a pot of tea positioned next to him, and grabbed another cup from his cupboard, pouring another glass for his gust, as if this were just a friendly chat between friends. "Here. Have a cup of tea." Dr. Genus pushed the cup toward Zombieman, but Zombieman made no motion to pick it up.

"I remember Sample No. 66 quite well," said Dr. Genus, adjusting his seat as he spoke in order to get more comfortable, "The one success of the immortality series, an excellent specimen who destroyed my facility and disappeared."

Had they been in the other room, the three of them would have heard some laughes of amazement and delight coming from outside of the Tako-yaki stand. "This is unbelievable!" Karmath turned his head toward his partner. "That man wasn't born naturally. Apparently, the owner of this restaurant, a man who goes by the name of Dr. Genus, created him artificially in an attempt to create an immortal being." Karmath grasped both of Orlen's shoulders. "Do you know what this means?!"

Orlen could only shake his head as a response.

"It means that if we capture that doctor, he might be able to find a way to make Lord Frieza immortal!"

When the gravity of this situation hit Orlen, a wide smile spread across his face. "And we'd be known as the ones who helped make Frieza immortal!"

"Now you're getting it!" said Karmath. "Aren't you glad you listened to me now?!"

"So what's the plan?"

"Alright, here's what I'm thinking: I'll stay here and continue to listen in on the conversation. You call in the rest of the foot soldiers and tell them to track our scouter's signal."

"Can't the two of us just take them by ourselves?"

"Didn't you hear what I said? That gorilla managed to take out a monster with a single hit! And the 2nd guy has immortality, so we can't kill him; the most either of us can do is slow him down! If we want to do this right, we need numbers to overpower them."

"I got it."

"Oh, and make sure to do it out of earshot so they won't hear you."

Orlen nodded, and walked several meters away to call in the rest of the foot soldiers. Karmath's heart was fluttering with delight; at last, his life was secured.

* * *

On the fighting grounds, the spectators' heads were spinning, trying to catch just a glimpse of the ongoing battle. Like the battles before, the only sign that a battle was even taking place was the extremely sharp bursts of air pressure and the fracturing rocks that split apart whenever they were in the vicinity of the colliding punches.

"Amazing," said Atomic Samurai, "And to think I didn't view him as worthy enough to shake my hand."

"If anything, you're not worthy of shaking his hand for holding yourself above him," said Genos sardonically, "He could swat you like a fly if he so chose."

Atomic Samurai slightly bowed his head down in shame. "He really could..."

"How could a hero be so powerful?" muttered Garou. The Hero Hunter was in stupefaction to know someone who followed the hypocritical, self-serving side of heroism could attain such a level of strength that far surpassed the levels of all other S-class heroes thus far. Could Garou ever attain this kind of power? Was it even possible? The 18-year old just didn't know.

On the battlefield, the terrain was electrified. Slowly but surely, the raw power of these two unbelievably powerful beings was beginning to unfold. The very Earth itself would tremble in fear before their might.

Frieza performed a series of front flips midair, and swung his tail at Saitama, who easily dodged all of the tail attacks. Frieza continued his assault and struck Saitama with a barrage of punches, with the hero merely blocking or dodging his blows. Frieza took note of his opponent's bored expression, and he squinted his eyes in anger. Frieza then flew up into the sky, and using both of his palms, fired a beam of purple energy. Saitama's eyes widened. "He can fly and shoot laser beams?" Saitama bent his knees and jumped right up to meet the energy blast, slicing through it like a pizza cutter would slice through pizza. Frieza's eyes widened when Saitama appeared before him. He hit Frieza with a right jab, but Frieza caught it with his own hand. He instantly regretted it, and let out a shout of pain as the force from Saitama's punch ran through his hand.

Frieza grunted angrily and kicked Saitama in the chin. Saitama did nothing to block or dodge the kick, however, and flew up momentarily into the sky. Frieza then fired a series of eye beams at Saitama while he was midair and vulnerable. A cloud of black smoke appeared around Saitama and covered him from Frieza. Instantly, however, the cloud of smoke disappated in the air, and Saitama threw a long distance punch. The shockwaves from the punch were immense, acting like an invisible ki blast that blew Frieza back. Frieza held his hands back and fired a stream of energy that ran counter to his own trajectory and stopped him midair just before he touched the ground.

"I didn't know you could fly!" shouted Saitama, "And with those energy beams, you kinda remind me of Boros and that purple guy with the antennae."

Frieza didn't even have to ask about the 2nd person he mentioned, although the statement caught Frieza by surprise. Why would he say that? Wouldn't such simple feats as flying and energy waves be the norm for someone as strong as Saitama? "Wait, are you saying you can't fly or use energy?"

"Nope," replied Saitama.

"But then what was that invisible burst of pressure you just attacked me with?"

"That was just my regular punch."

Frieza let out a meep of fear and surprise. Did he just hear him correctly? That was the force of his regular punch? And when he wasn't even fighting seriously?

Likewise, the other space pirates and the heroes watching the battle had their jaws opened.

"Did Recoome get a screw knocked loose? Because Recoome is pretty sure the baldy said that was just his regular punch."

"Jesus Christ," said Superalloy Darkshine, "He must have the muscles of a god to pull something like that off."

"So this is really the warrior we came here for," said Captain Ginyu, "No wonder Boros, Nappa, and Vegeta were bested."

"Well that's just peachy," said an irate Frieza, "But guess what? You're not the only one who can play at that game." Frieza flew to Saitama and appeared just a few feet in front of him. Frieza cupped both of his hands again and fired an invisible kiai. Saitama's eyes nominally widened as he was pushed back by Frieza's attack, briefly closing his eyes as well. But when Saitama opened his eyes, Frieza was gone.

"Hey! Where did you go?" Saitama looked around the landscape and saw nothing but rocks and dust. "Did you like camoflauge or something? I mean, I know chameleons can change their skin. Are you like some mutated alien chameleon? Cus that would explain a lot about you." Frieza finally made his move, appearing behind Saitama and kicking him across the head with his right foot. Next came a knee to his gut, and finally, a red energy sphere square in Saitama's face. Frieza grinned in delight; a direct hit at point-blank range! And he was just leaving himself wide open for any attack. What an idiot! "That ought to have done some damage!" He waited for the smoke to clear to see whether his hope rang true or not, and of course, Saitama just stood there like nothing happened.

"Grrrrhhhhhh..." Frieza gritted his teeth and was prepared to let out another shout of anger, but he didn't want to let Saitama get the best of him so soon into the battle, so he closed his eyes, took a deep breath, and calmly exhaled.

"You all good there?" said Saitama, "Already need to catch your breath?"

"Just fine, thank you." Saitama floated up into the air and held both his arms and hands out stretched. He floated backwards until he gently placed his feet on a rock cliff about 10 feet above Saitama. "You're quite the gifted warrior. Besides my parents, I don't believe anyone has ever worked me to this level. Truth be told, I can barely contain my excitement."

"Yea, I'm trying my best not to look too excited either," said Saitama, "Just look at my face." Saitama pointed both hands at his face, and widened his eyes.

"I can see that. Well, I guess I'll just have to heat things up." Frieza lifted his right hand up into the air, and instantly, a series of rocks him floated up in the sky. He lifted his other hand in sync with his other hand, and using both hands, twirled them in a circular motion, and began circling around him like an asteroid ring around a planet. Frieza extended his thumb, index finger, and middle finger, and one of the rocks was thrown at Saitama's face. Saitama didn't even lift a finger to stop the rock from hitting him in the face, but if the rock knew better, it would have known to get out of Saitama's way, for upon contact, the rock shattered and fell into dozens of tiny pieces. Frieza's smirk faded, and with both of his hands, he fired the rest of the rocks at Saitama, each rock striking Saitama at different angles. To his increased frustration, Saitama still stood there, and STILL took no visible damage.

"How come all any psychic wants to do is throw pebbles?" said Saitama, "It's a freaking waste."

"Oh, are these rocks not up to your satisfactory level of size?" retorted Frieza, "I'm so sorry. Here, let's play a game to make things more fun for you."

Frieza lifted both his hand with the palms face-up. Suddenly, the ground began to violently shake, knocking the spectators off balance. Saitama raised his eyebrows in confusion; what was Frieza up to? Behind Frieza, an enormous rock began to rise, being ripped straight out of the ground. The size of this boulder was unbelievable; even Tatsumaki herself couldn't help being shaken by its monumental size.

"It looks like a floating island!" said Puri-Puri-Prisoner.

"He ripped it right out of the ground!" said Genos in disbelief.

"How can such a monster exist?"

Likewise, the Space Pirates were letting out gasps of surprise and amazement. None of them had ever seen Frieza in his ultimate form, but the idea that their master could rip islands from the ground was unreal.

"Amazing, Lord Frieza!" shouted Captain Ginyu, "Crush that Earthling into a bloody pulp!"

"Oh I intend to," said Frieza quietly.

Saitama cracked a small smile. "Not bad. So what's this game called?"

"Rock Paper Scissors!" With a mighty thrust of his hands, the island-sized boulder came flying toward Saitama. Saitama bucked his hips, and prepared to take the rock head on.

"Except in my version, rock beats paper." The humongous rock prevented any of the spectators from seeing Saitama clearly once the boulder reached him.

The other heroes felt stomach being tied in knots. Each of them nervously glanced at each other, all of them worrying if Saitama could handle an island being thrown at him.

Bang and Genos, however, calmly smirked. "Frieza doesn't know what he's in for," said Bang.

Frieza smiled confidently, assured in his victory. But like Bang said, Frieza didn't know what he was in for. A deep rumbling echoed through the sky, emanating from the boulder. Suddenly, the boulder fractured into two semi-circles, landing on the ground with a thunderous crash.

Before Frieza had the time to let out a gasp of shock, Saitama appeared in front of him, smirking with confidence.

"I guess scissors cuts rock."

Saitama slapped him across the face, sending him skyrocketing to the side. Frieza propelled himself back to an upright position and fired a barrage of Death Beams at Saitama. Saitama flicked them away with his hands as one would flick away flies. The Death Beams lit up the sky with bright purple flashes of light, destroying even more of the terrain.

The force of the energy blasts coupled with the very intense energies of the two warriors caused the unconscious Super Saiyan to waken from his slumber. General Nappa was slow to get up; he felt all of his muscles were raw with pain and noticed dozens of wounds all over his chest. "What happened?" The memories of his unsavory defeat against that scumbag Frieza flashed back to him, and a surge of rage coursed through him in the process. That slimy reptile had actually managed to put him under like this? How humiliating!

"I'm gonna-" Nappa's sentence faltered when he saw Frieza floating in the sky, apparently looking at someone in front of him. Nappa turned to see who Frieza was looking at, and he gasped. It was Saitama! "So that bald bastard actually made it... Figures..." Frieza had no idea what he was in for; Saitama was unlike anything he'd ever seen, and pretty soon, Frieza'd figure that out too.

"Well, since I'm all banged up, might as well watch the show."

Frieza felt a sense of frustration, but he didn't let it put him down too much. The emperor still had plenty of tricks up his sleeve. "Alright, how about we try this?" Frieza sped to Saitama until he was only a few meters separate from him. He extended his arms in front of him and put on hand on top of the other. As soon as he did, a bright orange ball appeared around Saitama.

The bald hero felt a wave of pressure surrounding him, constricting his muscles. "What is this?" said Saitama.

"It's paralysis. Another useful feature of my psychic abilities."

"Nifty."

Frieza lifted his hands up into the sky with the intention of sending Saitama flying upward, but Frieza felt an instant tug preventing him from lifting Saitama more then a few inches off the ground. "What?" Frieza tried again, but he still felt a great resistance pushing against him.

"How the hell are you so heavy?" Frieza let out a very loud groan of frustration and exertion as he continued to try lifting Saitama off the ground. Saitama's eyes nominally widened in surprise when he saw himself slowly being lifted off the ground until he was hovering about 30 meters off the ground.

"So this is what it feels like to fly," said Saitama, "It's pretty neat."

Frieza felt like his insides we're going to burst, until he could no longer take the stress and put Saitama off the ground, still being careful to keep the paralysis in effect.

"Is this all you're paralysis can do? Cuz..." Saitama extended his arms out, and instantly, the bright orange ball around Saitama vanished.

"Unbelievable..."

"Alright, I've let you have your fun and sit idly by," said Saitama, "But I've had enough waiting around. Now, oftentimes, I'd usually have already killed regular monsters, but this time Ima do something a little different: I'm gonna draw this out for a little while since I've been waiting a few weeks for this, and I'm sure as hell not gonna end it with just a punch. Does that sound good to you?"

"Very well. You should know, though, that I've been fighting you with only a fraction of my full power," said Frieza in an attempt to incite some fear in Saitama. But Saitama just smirked with confidence and replied, "That's what I like to hear."

"Now lets see..." Saitama looked at the ground around him, as if he was searching for something. He ran about 10 to 20 meters northeast, but once he got there, he shook his head and ran toward another spot. Perplexed by this odd behavior, Frieza spoke out. "What are you doing exactly? Looking for a hole to dig your friend? Besides the one you've already dug for yourself."

Saitama let out another chuckle. "Nah. Besides, everything around here is rock, no soil to dig. No, what I'm looking for is the right spot to do this..."

Saitama bent his knees, and dug his fingers into the ground.

"Super Move Serious Series: Serious Table Flip."

To all of the spectators watching, in front of the S-class hero, a wall of black suddenly appeared. It took a few seconds to realize that what Saitama had done was flipped the entire ground below Frieza and all of the accompanying debris from the previous battles up into the air. Like the other spectators, it too took Frieza a few moments to understand what had just happened. All around him, he saw blue sky and rocks flying up in the air. When the realization of what had happened came to him, his face hardened to a serious stone tablet, and he surveyed everything around him.

"What a move!" shouted Frieza, "You must be pretty steamed to flip the tables around like that! I guess all that time waiting for me ground your gears! I'm touched!"

"I had to run across a continent, so yea, I'm pretty pissed." Before Frieza had the time to turn around, he felt a foot kicking him in the back. Frieza's trajectory was stopped by several rocks. "Hold on..." At the speed he was going, Frieza should have hit the ground. How high were they?! Frieza looked below him, and he couldn't believe it; none of the spectators were in sight. The only thing he saw was a little area of brown, which must have been the ground thousands of feet below. The shock quickly wore off, and Frieza focused his attention back to the matter at hand. He saw Saitama still hovering in the spot where he had hit him. Frieza bent his knees, and with all of his might, flew up and headbutted Saitama in the stomach. Saitama was sent crashing through many rocks just like Frieza had, although he gave no visible signs of pain.

Frieza couldn't be so cavalier in this fight any longer. An erroneous move would most likely cost him his life. This realization infuriated him, but in a way, it also brought him some excitement. He decided a change of attack would be a good call, specifically his close-range combat. Frieza focused his energy and channeled it into his fists. "I'll have to play this smart." And to do that, he'd have to be mobile. So he proceeded to jump across the many different rocks, changing his angle to make it more difficult for Saitama to track. Frieza flew at blinding speeds and punched Saitama across the face. Saitama attempted to grab him, but he was moving too fast, and he was unable to get a firm grip on him. Saitama followed him through the air and struck him with a series of love taps. Frieza and Saitama exchanged a series of close-range blows midair, but to the human eye, all they would have seen was bursts of air and debris being further destroyed. After a few seconds, Saitama's love taps eventually overpowered Frieza; the Space Emperor realized this, and he released a burst of energy around him that blew Saitama back momentarily.

Frieza performed a series of midair front flips and struck Saitama with his tail. He then wrapped his tail around Saitama and tightened his grip.

"Are you giving out free neck massages?" said Saitama. Frieza snarled, and formed a small fireball in his palm and fired it at point-blank range. Smoke enveloped around Saitama, but Saitama jumped upward, unharmed whatsoever, and engaged in another close-range brawl with Frieza.

Like before, Saitama's punches were but love taps. Fists collided, the air moistened with intensity, and the Space Emperor was yet again being overwhelmed.

The power of Saitama's punches was beginning to take a significant toll on him. So early in the battle, but already he was having blurry vision and could see blood forming on several parts of his body. He truly felt death creeping up on him. Could this duel really be over in such a short amount of time? Could Frieza really die with this sort of shame?

A great surge of fury and willpower rose up in Frieza. The lizard focused on maintaining focus, and the blurriness in his eyes instantly faded. He refused to be humiliated by an opponent such as this! He could not allow it!

"YYYYYYHHHHHHAAAAAAHHHHHH!" A purple aura enveloped around Frieza, and the surrounding rubble was vaporized by the high-level energy barrier. Saitama instantly noticed Frieza's punches increase in speed and ferocity. His love taps were quickly being overwhelmed by Frieza's newly empowered punches. Saitama beamed in delight. Maybe he could break a sweat! Well, not with the power he was displaying now, but it was a start.

"Not bad," said Saitama, "But not enough either."

"Normal Punch Combo."

"What?!" That was all that Frieza could say as his punches were instantaneously nullified by Saitama's punches and he was sent hurtling toward the Earth. He felt himself landing on the ground with a thud. He looked around and realized they had made it back to the ground; Zarbon and the remaining Ginyus were looking on in distress, and from the sky, Saitama crashed down, sending several more rocks momentarily up into the sky.

Frieza was panting like a dog in a hot summer afternoon. His body was covered with smudges and bruises, and his hands were throbbing. Frieza couldn't understand it. "No matter what I hit him with or no matter how many times I hit him with my attacks, he doesn't feel a thing. It's as if his body is an impenetrable suit of armor that protects him from anything."

Frieza looked at his hands and saw the dark smudges and slightly increased size from swelling. "To think that a mere human could have such unbelievable amounts of strength!" thought Frieza in his mind, "I attacked him with 50% of my power, and he treated it like it was nothing!" No one has ever pushed my body to this extremity before." Frieza looked up at his opponent, who, even after the earth-shaking battle underway, appeared as if he were on a regular Sunday stroll. His teeth were clenched in anger, and his fists were shaking in rage.

"Why... YOU!"

* * *

Unbeknownst to any of the spectators on Earth, in a parallel dimension, the being known as God was observing the ensuing struggle with intense curiosity and burgeoning bafflement. God watched as fighter after fighter arrived and was easily disposed of by the Emperor of the Universe, and of course, when Saitama had arrived. God thought Frieza could handle himself against Saitama, but this belief was quickly proven wrong. Even with only a fraction of his power, Saitama was more than a match against Frieza at 50% power.

"With such a large power gap, I'm not sure how Frieza will reign supreme over Saitama. However, I have reason to hope..."

"Even though I know little of Frieza's life, from what I've seen of this battle so far, Frieza's willpower is extremely formidable. Just like Saitama, and just like Garou. I could sense Frieza's life force fading, but it instantly reappeared, and with it, Frieza managed to momentarily overwhelm Saitama's initial punches. His determination managed to prevail over the feeling of death."

"For this is the true key to surpassing one's limits: overcoming death. Only Saitama has managed to do this. And if an ordinary man such as him could do it, there should be no reason why a mutant prodigy such as Frieza shouldn't be able to."

"If Frieza can continue to surpass the sensation of death, gradually use more of his power and overcome Saitama's increased power, perhaps he could obtain an explosive growth of power like Saitama did.

"I can only hope."

* * *

Back on the battlefield, Saitama's expression was still rather dull, but Frieza's anger felt like it was going to burst.

"You're pretty strong," said Saitama blatantly. This comment alleviated some of Frieza's anger, and the pressure built up in his teeth and fists dialed down. "I haven't felt this way since Boros."

"Likewise. No wonder Boros was defeated. But alas, the difference between him and I is you fought him at his maximum power. I've only fought you with about half of my true power."

"Join the club," blurted Saitama, "That's me everyday of my life. It's freaking boring as hell." This new revelation made a question pop up in Saitama's brain. "Let me ask you something: if you're this powerful, how do you deal with it?"

"Deal with what?"

"The boredom. How do you cope knowing there's nobody who can give you the exhilaration of a real fight?"

"Oh, getting personal are we?" said Frieza, "Well, if you were here before, you would have seen I have the ability to undergo transformations that reduce my strength significantly."

"Lucky."

"But unlike you, I'm an opulent ruler who doesn't need to reduce himself to barbarous engagement to quell my tedium. Such trivial matters are beneath me. Now, if we might, I'd like to cease this heart-to-heart and do what I came here to do: put you in the ground."

"Sound's good to me."

"But..." Frieza looked at the barren wasteland all around him filled with piles of rocks and uneven grounds spanning for miles around, and he shook his head in disapproval. "If it's alright with you, I'd prefer to move to a place that isn't completely destroyed."

"Fine, fine. What do you suggest?"

"Follow me." Frieza levitated off the ground, and motioned Saitama to follow him up in the sky. Saitama bent his knees down and jumped up to accompany his opponent. The two of them were flying through the air, searching for a more optimal place to resume their legendary battle. The entire terrain was just barren rock lands devoid of any life. Just when Frieza was about to give up on finding a better spot, a new biome came into view. A field of lush green grass spanned for several miles. A crystal clear lake glimmered in the morning sun, and a series of tall pine trees were spread across the land.

"We'll choose that as our next area of battle," shouted Frieza through the noisy wind.

"Got it!" replied Saitama. The two fighters quickly descended to their new fighting ground. Once they reached the ground, both of them took a moment to survey the landscape and somewhat admire the lush greenery in comparison to the arid and sun-baked ground they just left.

"You know, I'm feeling like having a little fun," said Saitama, "So how about this? I'll fight without using either of my hands."

"What a generous offer. Alright, I accept your terms. But I must warn you," Frieza smirked with his typical poise, "the gloves are coming off this round."

"Oh." Frieza's smirk floundered when he saw Saitama proceed to pull his gloves off his hands. "I didn't mean literally..."

Saitama snickered, catching Frieza off guard. "I know, just messing with you."

"Ahhh..." Frieza couldn't help but give a small smile of amusement as a response. "Well played."

"Now then..." A purple aura encased itself around Frieza, and his muscles tightened as he felt the power surging through him. "Let the real fight begin."

* * *

 _Ba-ba-ba Bam! The first round of the ultimate battle is over! Hope it was everything you were waiting for, and also hope none of the characters were OOC._

 _Now, I figure I owe an explanation for the crazy and anti-climactic end to Blast, the #1 S-class hero. Well, I've got a few reasons for this: One, I wanted to see the look on your faces. Two, I wanted to do a reverse One Punch Man with Blast. Three, there simply just isn't enough information about Blast. There's been next to no mention of him besides a few flashbacks here and there and his defeat of Elder Centipede, but beyond that, he's a total stranger. I gotta be honest, most of the theories about Blast are pretty stupid in my opinion, like how Blast is somehow Saitama, even though Tatsumaki met him when she was 13, meaning Saitama was 9, or that Blast is Saitama's father. If he was, you really think Saitama wouldn't ever mention him even once? Or like mention him as his role model in his decision to become a hero? Four, I find it hard to believe that Blast would be so overwhelmingly more powerful than most of the S-class heroes since he still has his hair, and having no hair is one of main attributes of having a person's limiter removed, so while me might be more powerful than some S-class heroes, I don't imagine he's dimensions above them in speed and strength, unlike Saitama and Frieza. And finally, I feel having Blast would detract from the final confrontation between Saitama and Frieza. Well, that's my opinion, feel free to review and object to it._

 _Until Chapter 25, when Round 2 of this legendary battle will begin!_


	25. Concursus Titanis: Part II

_Alrighty then, Chapter 25 is up! The 2nd part of the climactic battle between Saitama and Frieza has finally arrived! Enough lollygag! Let's get it on!_

* * *

"Let the real fight begin."

Frieza was the first to initiate the 2nd round. The Space Emperor launched a flurry of punches, but Saitama nonchalantly avoided all of his strikes. Frieza then swept Saitama's feet from under him, but Saitama jumped up. Frieza followed suit and released several more kicks and punches; the S-class hero continued to evade his strikes, occasionally blocking Frieza's kicks with his own legs or with his shoulders. Frieza then continued to attack, this time, with his tail, whipping it in the air and creating mild shockwaves in the process. To his endless frustration, Saitama's speed outpaced Frieza's attacks.

Frieza launched Saitama back with a ball of purple energy. A rapid barrage of purple energy blasts followed suit, and in mere seconds, the sky was illuminated with purple light. Saitama was floating in the air, taking the full force of the multitudinous energy waves like they were nothing. Frieza appeared mere inches in front of him, and struck him hard across the face with a right hook. Frieza continued with these hook fists, relentlessly pummeling Saitama's face like it was a punching bag, using his rage as fuel for his punches. "That's gonna leave a mark," said Frieza.

"Yea, on your fists." Saitama head-butted Frieza in the forehead, eliciting a large shout of pain. He then performed a side kick in Frieza's abdomen, sending him dashing through the air, and as a follow-up strike, Saitama kicked Frieza in the small of his back with his heel. Frieza crashed into the ground, but he immediately flew back up, with a purple aura flaring up around him, and struck Saitama with an orb of energy. But this time, Saitama grabbed the orb in Frieza's hand and crushed it in the palm of his hand. "Not this time." The two then proceeded to punch and kick each other, all-the-while descending down from the sky.

Frieza took defensive counter-maneuvers and blocked Saitama's kicks with his elbows and fists. Frieza groaned in frustration, and thrusted Saitama back several dozen meters with an invisible Kiai. Frieza then placed his middle finger and index finger together and gathered a surge of energy into his fingertips. A bright purple ball of energy the size of an apple appeared at his fingertips.

"Death Wave!"

Frieza swung the energy sphere around, creating a large Death Beam in the form of a giant, razor-sharp energy blade heading straight for Saitama.

Alas, the bald hero would not be deterred. While still hovering in the sky, Saitama waited for the for the Death Wave, and did perhaps the most bizarre thing possible: he bit it.

"What... the... fuck..." Those were the only words that came out of Frieza's mouth as he watched the utterly outlandish defense Saitama was using against his death wave. His Death Wave, a technique that could perhaps slice an entire moon in half, was being stopped by teeth? "How idiotic..." Saitama clamped his teeth as hard as he could onto this Death Wave; there were purple sparks flying from Saitama's mouth, and for a moment, the hero struggled against the energy wave, being pushed back into the ground. The inside of his mouth was actually starting to heat up as the friction and kinetic energy intensified and made his mouth into a sauna . "Maybe this wasn't the best idea," thought Saitama. As the seconds passed, the intensity of the Death Wave increased, becoming more unstable and expelling more bolts of energy and electricity. At the current rate, the Death Wave would slice the top of the hero's head off.

Although the only thing the Death Wave would slice that day was its dreams of killing Saitama. "This..." Saitama spoke with muzzled speech, "IS... NOTHING!" Saitama grabbed the Death Wave with both of his hands and dug his heels into the ground. With a burst of strength, Saitama split the energy razor into three pieces. He tossed two of the pieces, where they then exploded, and the third piece, he spit out of his mouth, burning the grass below him into charred ashes. "Ahhhhhh!" Saitama rubbed his front teeth with his hand, trying to see if there were any stains or anything of that nature. Thank god, there weren't, but goddamn, that attack had packed more punch than he expected.

"Bite me, dickless!" shouted Saitama.

"Sorry, I don't take small bites," replied Frieza. "So did you enjoy your little chowdown? I thought you said you weren't going to use your hands."

"Yea, well now that I felt your power, I figure I'll need to use my hands to beat you. To tell you the truth, it's actually got me pretty pumped.

"I'm sure it does. But it's too bad I didn't take a little off the top there just now. Oh wait! There's nothing to take off!"

Saitama's face scrunched in anger, but he calmed himself down and evilly smirked. "Oh, I'm going to enjoy this..." Saitama kicked the ground, causing several boulders to fly a few feet into the sky. Saitama kicked the boulders one by one at blinding speeds, creating shockwaves in the process. Frieza smoothly dodged all of the boulders, and for the last boulder, he captured it with his hand, making sure to move his hand back to decrease the acceleration and minimize damage to his hand. "Right back at you." The Space Emperor tossed the large boulder back at Saitama, and the bald hero broke the boulder with his fist into millions of shards that shot out in all directions. Frieza flew down to Saitama, striking him with another series of close-range punches. The two warriors constantly disappeared and reappeared from visible sight, leveling the ground below them, tearing up grass, releasing tremors into the ground.

Frieza put his elbows crossed together, and struck Saitama in the chest, sending the two of them diving into the water. A huge wave of water splashed up dozens of meters into the sky, creating waves that were several feet in height. The two were diving deeper and deeper into the lake, with Frieza striking a repeated, anger-driven flurry of punches at Saitama's chest. Once Frieza landed his last punch, his eyes began to glow a bright purple, and his eye beams struck Saitama, sending him all the way down to the bottom depths of the profoundly deep lake. Saitama composedly shook off the damage and got himself back on his feet. He took note of the depths he had travelled down, opaque darkness surrounding him on all sides. His superhuman senses allowed him to more accurately observe in darker surroundings, although it was still nonetheless difficult. Saitama noticed a form coming into view; Frieza was calmly floating down to the bottom, with his arms crossed and a smirk splitting his face. From the palm of his hand, a very bright white ball of energy grew to about the size of a boulder, allowing for the fighters to properly see in this black setting. Small fish and other organisms scurried away at the sight of this sudden flash of light. The two warriors remained motionless, staring at each other in a silent pause. What the two fighters didn't know was that at the moment, they were swimming in Lake Abyssus, the deepest freshwater source on the planet. Both were currently about 10,000 feet underwater; at that level, any human would have already been crushed by the colossal water pressure from the immense weight of the water piled above them, but for warriors of such caliber as these, the most this would give them was a little crick in their backs.

The silence continued on for about half a minute. It was as if this was a competition, seeing which one would break and reach the surface for air.

"Damn, he's not giving in," thought Saitama.

"Impressive resistance. My race possesses the ability to survive in the vacuum of space, and this is not much different." Frieza's smile widened. "But let's see how long he can keep this up."

The seconds passed. Both had reached the minute mark. How long was this going to on? Then it came. Saitama began to impatiently tap his finger on his shoulder. Next, his left foot began tapping on the ground. Saitama's neutral expression was slowly beginning to fade, and his face began to turn a bright hue of red. Frieza let out an imperceptible laugh. He was running on fumes! Saitama pretended to act as if nothing was happening, and stared at Frieza with a confident stare. There was no way he was letting this smug bastard get the better of him. This prideful montra was quickly beginning to wane, being replaced by the feeling of having the air sucked out of his lungs like a vacuum cleaner.

"Damn it!" No longer being able to take the lack of air, Saitama bent his knees down, and performed his Serious Jump. Saitama's form was but a momentary blur as he dashed up through the water. The ground beneath Frieza's feet quaked, causing him to lose his balance.

10,000 feet above Frieza, the bald hero was desperately gasping for air, taking deep breathes and coughing up water he choked on. Once Saitama's breathing leveled out, he realized how high he had jumped, even though he was under thousands of feet of water. Saitama began his descent, but when he was merely a few feet from crashing into the water, the lake suddenly split into two. At first, Saitama didn't understand what was happening, but then he realized it must have been Frieza using his psychic powers again. When Saitama looked down, all he could see was the same giant ball of energy Frieza conjured up before. Frieza wasn't anywhere in sight; where did he go?

"Right here, ass-face!"

"Huh?"

Turned out Frieza was right above him; he felt his elbow slam his back, increasing the velocity of their descent several-fold. It took about 8 seconds for them to reach the bottom of ground; as a follow-up, he grabbed Saitama's cape and began swinging him at amazing speeds. This feeling reminded Saitama of his Serious Spin he used against Nappa, although Frieza's spinning wasn't quite as fast. Good times, good times. Once he felt he had gained enough speed, Frieza sent him soaring back up to the sky. For the final touch, Frieza sped up behind him and fired a red energy blast. The force of the blast was intense; the blast spanned several feet in width and enveloped several hundred meters of land below them. Scorching everything in its path, the energy wave sent Saitama barreling toward the ground. The emperor's confidence rose after his combo attack; Frieza flew down to the ground until he was a few feet away from Saitama's motionless body. It took a few seconds for the bald hero to change his position, but when he did move, it was very brisk and fluid, showing the relatively little damage he received. The repeated sense of frustration rose up in Frieza, but he chose not to hold onto it or fester inside and just let it go.

"Not a bad move, man," said Saitama, stretching his arms into the air and rotating his back as if he had just finished an exercise. "You really area tough one, aren't you?

"Naturally."

"Oh, I forgot..." Saitama lunged at Frieza and, holding back a significant portion of his power, punched the slimy lizard in the stomach. "Don't call me ass-face."

A sonic boom was created from the force of the punch, and Frieza's form instantly became an indistinguishable blur flying through the sky. Saitama jumped forward and followed up his attack.

"Consecutive Normal Punches." Saitama launched a series of quick right-handed punches, to which Frieza blocked or dodged, still being rather careful with his movements. As the two of them exchanged blows, they found themselves entering the nearby forest for their next battleground.

Saitama and Frieza were either running or flying across the tops of the trees. Saitama was using the branches to propel himself through the air, whilst Frieza was merely soaring through the air. The two fighters proceeded to strike each other with long-distance attacks; Saitama used the force of his punches as his own personal energy attacks, and Frieza fired a rapid barrage of Death Beams. Trees were mowed down, the colliding strikes acting as razor sharp axes chopping everything around them. Saitama stopped himself on one of the trees, and ripped a nearby tree right out of the ground. He swung it around and slammed Frieza with it; the tiny lizard caught it with one hand, and with his other free hand, ripped an adjacent tree just as Saitama had, and with the trunk of the tree, jabbed Saitama in the chest. Frieza split the tree in half with a sharp ki slice, and for the final touch, launched a Death Cannon.

Saitama actually felt a little fuse blow off in his head. "Alright, you asked for this!" shouted Saitama. The bald hero balanced himself on one of the thicker branches of the trees, and bent his knees. Frieza didn't like this. "What's he doing..."

Saitama took a deep breath in, and out.

"Killer Move Serious Series: Serious Chops."

Frieza's eyes bulged out of his eyes; if it weren't for his advanced speed and reflexes, he wouldn't have had enough time both add a barrier of psychic energy around himself and cross his arms in front of him to defend himself. Hundreds of trees were uprooted from their spots; small animals such as squirrels, birds, frogs, and other creatures were sent flying into the sky, crushed by the trees and other large debris. Frieza powered up and allowed his energy to burst in a large purple vortex, resisting the monumental current flowing against him. Then, at the tip of Frieza's fingertips, two more small orbs of energy were being formed.

"Death Razors!" Frieza released his Death Waves together to form a very large X-shaped energy attack. The purple Death Razors instantly clashed against Saitama's Serious Chops. Intense sparks were flying at the center, lighting some of the trees on fire. In a spontaneous burst, the energy from these two moves exploded, producing a bright flash of light that blinded both fighters. When visibility was regained, the two warriors saw that yet again, the landscape was leveled. Hundreds, no, thousands, of trees were vaporized, with the grass charred beyond recognition, creating another vast wasteland. Neither warrior made a move. Both were quietly looking at one another, their faces showing no signs of expression whatsoever. Just... blank staring.

Then, the first movement; the bald hero lifted his right foot, and started a regular pace toward his opponent. Once Frieza noticed his opponent moving, the emperor followed by example, and serenely walked to meet up with Saitama. When they ceased their walking, they were but a few feet apart from each other. Still, neither of them said a word; both were digesting the events of the battle, pondering their opponents thoughts, and curious about what direction the battle would take from his point on.

"Congrats," said Saitama, effectively breaking the silence that had built up, "You're officially the first guy I've faced who's ever survived one of my Serious Series attacks."

"Likewise," replied Frieza, "Nobody has ever pushed me to this extremity before. Not even my parents have fought me at such a high degree.

"It really would be such a waste to kill you, so I'll give you a rare second chance: join me, and I'll make you Supreme Commander of the Frieza Force. You'll get to hand-pick one of the 400 planets I currently own. Either way, you'll still be on my property. So what do you say?"

Saitama wagged his finger and made condescending clicking noises with his tongue. "Sorry, no sale Charlie. Well, since I'm on your land, might as well get into character." Saitama put his hands on his knees, and bent down until his head was at Frieza's waist. He then held his middle finger out to Frieza. "Squatter Lives Matter."

Frieza let out an amused chuckle. "Well, don't say I didn't warn you. Sadly, only one outcome remains for you then: your death."

"Oh really? How do you figure?"

"Don't think your little tricks can fool me. You'd like me to believe you're lashing out at me full-steam, but you and I both know we haven't seen the limits of your strength just yet."

"GASP!" Saitama rose up off the ground and clapped his hands against his cheeks, looking like Kevin Mccalister in the classic Home Alone movie. "Who would have thought?! We literally just went over this like 10 minutes ago! God, with you, it just goes in one ear or out the other, or whatever you call those holes in your head."

"Oh, I didn't forget. I just know that it's a bluff. I can't imagine your power level to beyond 100 million, and I still have ample energy to spare."

"Oh-hoh-hoh! Are you calling me out?"

Frieza crossed his arms. "Prove me wrong."

"Prove you wrong?! I thought you'd never ask." Saitama turned away from Frieza and took a few paces backwards, pausing after the 10th step and briskly twirled around 180 degrees. "You know, I've seen some pretty cocky monsters, but your arrogance takes the cake. I'm gonna enjoy beating that smug grin off your face."

"Well..." Frieza arched his back forward ever-so-slightly, extended his hands out downward, and nominally bowed his head down. "I'll enjoy seeing you try."

"Alright," Saitama cracked his knuckles to sound more badass, "But don't say I didn't warn you." Neither one made a move. The cold wind whipped across their faces.

The other heroes had travelled a considerable distance from their original spots to get a better view of the battlefield. At that moment, all of the spectators were perched on a high ledge that was about 1000 to 1500 meters away from Saitama and Frieza's positions; due to the injuries they had sustained, it took them considerably longer than expected, so they didn't get a chance to see any of the battle that caused all of the destruction, but it was quite obvious that they were responsible for all of the damage that had been done to this land. They were astonished with the level of devastation present before them; they were quite powerful indeed.

"What are they doing just standing there?" said Sweet Mask, "Neither one of them is making a move."

"They're both waiting for the right moment to make their next move." Everyone head's turned to the speaker: Garou. Garou clenched his heart, and noticed goosebumps all over his skin. His body was sending out a huge red flag, even from such a far distance, that it was almost hard to believe it was even real. "Even from here, the pressure of their combined power is almost more than I can bear."

"That's no lie..." said Atomic Samurai.

Several hundred meters away, the Saiyan General was quietly observing the battle as well, in awe of the power both warriors had displayed thus far. Even with his new power, Nappa couldn't register a hint of their movements. Saitama hadn't fought Nappa anywhere near the level of power he was showing at the moment.

"Saitama, you're just full of surprises..."

For several seconds, the battlefield was silent. The atmosphere of apprehension and power enveloped around both combatants, and both were quietly waiting to see who would act first and heighten the tension of this setting.

It was Saitama who finally made the move; his eyes widened ever so slightly, his body leaning forward just a few centimeters. Frieza let out a gasp of shock; with blitzing speed, Saitama nailed Frieza in the chest with his elbow. The space emperor was sent back several meters, the force of the blow temporarily knocking his senses out of whack, which made him unprepared for the uppercut to his jaw. Frieza hurtled up into the sky, plopping back down to the Earth with a hard thud. Once his senses came back to him, he felt a huge sense of pain surging throughout his entire body. For a moment, he lost his balance, and fell back to the ground. He struggled to regain his footing; drool began to dribble out of his mouth, and he could feel a liquid running down his nose. It didn't take a genius to figure out that it was his blood. But how?!

"Two blows! There's no way I should have taken this much damage! It's impossible!" Once again, the blurriness began to cloud his eyes, but this time, Frieza was beginning to lose feeling in his arms as well. He could see the blood from his nose drip down on the ground, and the blood from his other wounds were also dripping as well. In fact, it was taking all his focus not to fall onto the ground and clutch his chest, but he had to maintain the illusion that the damage wasn't so horribly severe.

* * *

God was growing more and more concerned. "Frieza! You must not be defeated by this worm! Stand up and fight! Do not allow the cold embrace of death to overtake you!" The entire dimension trembled as God's frustration soared. "FIGHT!"

* * *

Saitama snidely snickered in response; seeing the way Frieza was freaking out after all of the big shit he was talking was actually pretty fulfilling. Frieza took note of the amusement Saitama had with this, and he felt a nerve strike inside him, so Frieza lunged at Saitama. His purple aura was burning even brighter, being fueled by his unmitigated wrath, to which Saitama blocked with his own arms. The force built up from the blows was so powerful, it created sharp bursts of air all around them and managed to crack the ground below them. Frieza swung his body around and struck Saitama with a series of tail attacks. Alas, Saitama grabbed the space emperor's tail and slammed him into the ground. He lifted Frieza up and did the same maneuver about 5 times until Frieza broke free of his grip and fired a Death Cannon. Saitama caught the Death Cannon with his hand, and crushed it into nothingness. Frieza lifted his hand palm-up, and on the ground, several stones were carved out of the ground. He then formed his hand into a fist, causing the multiple stone bricks to be cut away until they were large daggers. Finally, he thrust his hand forward, sending all of the sharp daggers flying toward Saitama. The bald hero kicked the ground, creating a giant wall of stone that blocked all of the daggers. Then, Saitama performed a side-kick, sending the giant stone wall flying at tremendous speeds. Frieza was unprepared for a counterattack as such, so he was forced to take the full brunt of the stone wall. After a few seconds of flying through the air, Frieza's back collided against a rock canyon. The impact destroyed the small rock canyon and buried the space emperor under a pile of rubble.

In seconds, the entire pile of rubble was vaporized by a bright purple release of energy. Saitama sprinted up and lobbed Frieza in the gut before the space emperor had the chance to attack again. The Emperor of the Universe was being absolutely pummeled; no matter what he did, Saitama was able to counter or dodge it as if it were child's play. Frieza was floating in the air, furiously trying to search for Saitama's position, when Saitama kicked him in the back. Frieza rotated to strike back at Saitama, but Saitama struck him with a volley of short jabs. His punches were so fast, the only thing he could see was a giant mass of red covering Saitama's upper body. Frieza was sent crashing into the ground, but using his telekinesis, he stopped himself just before he reached the ground. Frieza soard up into the air, and fired a Death Beam. Frieza's eyes widened at what he saw: Saitama dodged it at such amazing speed, Frieza could barely even tell he moved at all. To the regular eye, it would have appeared as if the energy beam had gone straight through Saitama's body.

"That's not possible!" shouted Frieza, "No one can move that quickly!"

"Dude, you have no idea what's possible." The way Saitama spoke wasn't so much condescending, but rather, it was a more knowledgable tone of voice. The way he spoke sounded as if he was a teacher and Frieza was the student. Frieza picked up on this, eliciting a grunt of anger from the lizard. "Silence! Don't speak to me like I am a fool! I am the ruler of the universe! It is the fate given to me by destiny! My power, my wealth, my social status, they are all part of my grandeur! I control everything and anyone who crosses my path! The likes of you are only meant to grovel at my feet like the worm you are!"

Saitama's smirk faded, and his expression was now very serious. "You're living under a delusion."

Frieza snarled. "What are you talking about?"

"You're so convinced of your "grandeur", so convinced that the power you have is enough to beat anyone who stands in your wary, that you don't even bother to train, to better your abilities. Let me ask you something: have you ever trained a day in your life?"

"I trained with my father as a child, but other than that, no; such a thing is beneath me."

"Beneath you?" Saitama let out a laugh of derisiveness. "If that's what you think, then you're a bigger idiot than I thought. You think I was born with this power?" Saitama extended his hands and pointed his fingers to himself. "Of course not! Neither are any of the heroes that you fought! Do you wanna know how I got this strong?"

"Fine, humor me."

"I trained like absolute hell for the last three years. Every single day, I would push my body beyond its limits. I'd keep on fighting, no matter how painful, how torturous, how unbearable it got. Even when I was coughing up blood, when I thought my whole body was on fire, that I'd just collapse dead on the ground from exhaustion, I always kept going. And do you know why I put myself through that living hell?" Frieza passively shrugged his shoulders.

Saitama's lips curled into a sly smile. "So I could take care of self-righteous pricks like you."

A chorus of chuckles emanated from Frieza. "Take care of me, you say?" The corners of the lizard's mouth pointed downward, and his entire body began to tremble with rage.

'I'D LIKE TO SEE YOU TRY!" Frieza sprung for his opponent, refusing to let this infuriating man get the better of him. Alas, it was still not enough to deter Saitama; the hero smoothly dodged Frieza's attack, and managed to grab his wrist. Using his momentum, Saitama threw Frieza into the ground yet again, and kicked him in the jaw. Suddenly, Frieza felt five fingers firmly clasp his head. "This isn't good."

"Nope." Saitama slammed Frieza head-first into the ground. He then dragged Frieza across the ground like a plow would dig across soil. The space emperor attempted to release himself from Saitama's grip, but Saitama's grip was like katchin. The pain was unbearable; it felt like nails were being hammered into his face. It wasn't the rocks that were the problem, but the speed with which Saitama was dragging him and the grip he had made this unbearable. He continued yanking him on the ground until they made it to a canyon about 30 meters tall. Saitama pulled Frieza all the way up to the top of the canyon until there was a straight line sawing the canyon in half.

"I think that's enough of that." Having had enough fun with the lizard, Saitama released Frieza from his grip and sent him flying several meters into the air. Saitama threw a powerful punch in the air; the force of the punch created powerful gusts of wind that blew Freiza even further up into the air.

Saitama noticed Frieza's motionless body hovering in the air. "I might have pushed it a little too far there," said Frieza. Indeed, that seemed to be the case, as he began a downward descent without even bothering to stop himself. He couldn't; the force of Saitama's little fun drag had been a bit too much for the tiny lizard. With a loud thud, the emperor of the universe plummeted to the Earth, spewing up dust and cracking the rock below him.

"You alright?" Frieza's didn't move a muscle. Saitama jumped up several dozen meters into the air and landed about 10 feet away from Frieza. "Yoo-hoo." Saitama snapped his fingers to get Frieza's attention. "You still with me? Or are you already dead, and all I'm doing is just talking to my myself?" Once Saitama finished speaking, a finger twitched. Frieza's legs soon followed suit, and he gradually began to push himself back on his feet.

"Enough..." Frieza's gaze was facing the ground, but Saitama didn't have to look into his eyes to know he was beyond furious. Suddenly, a tremor began to shake the earth. The tremor soon began to increase in power, threatening to knock Saitama and even the spectating heroes off balance. Then, surrounding debris began to levitate off of the ground several meters into the air.

"I HAVE HAD ENOUGH OF THIS MOCKERY!" His aura burst around him in a bright purple burst. Frieza soared up several hundred meters into the sky, then, he held his index finger out. Zarbon and Captain Ginyu let out a gasp of terror; they were all-too-familiar with what was to come.

Both were in utter shock. "Is he really..."

"Yes, he is!" shouted Captain Ginyu. "His most powerful attack! The Supernova!"

Frieza's malicious laughter rang out through the air. Saitama shifted in tension; what was Frieza up to?

At the tip of Frieza's finger, a small bright orb of energy came to life. The orb expanded exponentially by the second, until the small sphere became a colossal orb of energy that one could mistaken for a miniature sun. The heroes bucked in terror.

"What is that thing?!"

"It looks like a sun!"

"How powerful can this demon be?!"

Frieza smiled maniacally, brimming with delight. "You're powerful, but let's see how you handle this power capable of obliterating an entire planet! Dodge it, and you'll die along with your precious planet!"

"No!" The heroes were petrified; how could any human hope of standing up to an attack like that? It was impossible!

"NO! LORD FRIEZA, WE'LL ALL BE KILLED!" screamed Zarbon.

But the Emperor of the Universe would not be deterred, not in the slightest. "DISAPPEAR!" Frieza threw his finger across the air, and sent the Supernova hurtling towards the planet. The fiery orb of death sizzled with heat; as it arrived closer to the ground, the terrain began to melt, even before it touched the earth, only further demonstrating the grandiose might of Frieza's most powerful attack. Saitama's eyes were covered in darkness, and his hands were tightly clenched into fists, but his face remained neutral and composed.

"Well, I did this once, I'll do it again.

"Killer Move, Serious Series: Serious Punch." The bald hero unleashed one of his more devastating strikes, punching the Supernova with his raw power. The contact created a giant sonic boom that shook the Earth around them, toppled over remaining trees, and created tidal waves about 10 meters in height. The power from Saitama's punch managed to dissipate the Supernova, rupturing it into millions of tiny little wisps of light that flickered like fireflies. Lord Frieza felt his jaw drop to the ground, his mouth spewing out incoherent stutters as his only response to what he just witnessed.

Zarbon and the Ginyu's yelped in horror.

"Lord Frieza!" shouted Zarbon, "This can't possibly be!"

"How can an Earthling possess the power to match Frieza's ultimate form?" said Captain Ginyu in utter terror.

"It's unreal!"

"Recoome needs to take a breather! Cuz Recoome's panicking!"

The other spectators, however, were passionately cheering, amazed and baffled by the edge Saitama had over Frieza. The prophesied god-level threat that would bring humanity to its death was being single-handedly taken care of by the "hero swindler". And he didn't even seem like he was putting all of his effort! It was unbelievable!

"His strength is other-worldly," said Bomb.

"What kind of iron did he pump to get those muscles?" said Superalloy Darkshine.

"Saitama's victory is secured," stated Atomic Samurai.

"Of course it is." The teenage cyborg became the center of attention, and all of the fighters turned their attention toward him. "I was a fool to doubt my master's abilities. His strength is beyond what anyone can ever hope to achieve. He is the sole protector of humanity, and I am proud to be his disciple."

Up in the sky, Frieza was at a loss for words; his eyebrows were scrunched in fear and disbelief, his shoulders were slumped down, and he felt the feeling in his fingers and toes disappear. "Wha-Wha-whhaaa..."

"It's done!" Frieza's shocked face turned into frustration when he heard Saitama yelling. The Emperor bared his teeth and grunted angrily. "What are you talking about, you simpleton?!"

"If that was the best you can do, then it's already over. Truth be told, I've barely been fighting you half-seriously; you definitely put up a good fight, and you're one of the only guys I've ever had to actually put some minor effort against, but it's done. Judging by the look on your face, I'd say I'm right."

Up in the sky, Zarbon's eyebrows lifted in worry. "God, could he be right? Is this really the end of the road for Lord Frieza!"

"Don't be ridiculous, Zarbon!" retorted Captain Ginyu, "Our master can never be defeated! He is the supreme being of the universe! Nothing can stand against him!" Sadly, Captain Ginyu spoke these words halfheartedly, for never in his life had he seen his master pushed to his limit before; as much as he detested to admit this, he actually didn't know who would win.

The Emperor of the Universe was seething with rage, turmoil, and hatred; although he did his best not to show it, he was on the verge of death. The blows from Saitama's special combo moves had taken their toll, and he barely had the energy to move his limbs. The Emperor felt so close to Death's doors, and Death was waiting for him to ring the doorbell. Veins were popping out of his forehead and his fingers were jabbing so deep into his skin, his palms began to fill with his crimson blood. All-the-while, his mind was racing. "What an utter disgrace! To think that I could be so easily toyed with by a half-breed human from a back-water mudball, and to make it worse, my elite soldiers are viewing me in such a defeated state! This is a nightmare! Yes, that's the only way to explain this! How else could this happen?" This entire conversation was echoing in his head.

"NOOOOO!" Frieza's tail slammed viciously against the ground. "I WILL NOT LET THIS STAND! MY MIGHT IS UNRIVALED ACROSS THE UNIVERSE! YOUR POWER IS BUT A MERE SPECK COMPARED TO MINE!"

Saitama remained calm and composed. "Once again, deluding yourself. You want to conquer and subjugate everyone under you, to make everyone's life a nightmare except for you and anyone under your rule. There's no way I'd ever let somebody like you beat me and take over this planet."

"SILENCE!" Frieza sliced his hand across the air. "HAVE YOU FORGOTTEN WHO YOU'RE UP AGAINST?! YOU WILL RUE THE DAY YOU CROSSED ME!" A bright white aura with a hint of light blue enveloped Frieza. "YOU BELIEVE THAT THIS IS THE ZENITH OF MY GRANDIOSE STRENGTH?! HOW LUDICROUS! AS A GIFT FOR YOUR IMPUDENT RESISTANCE, I WILL GIVE YOU SOMETHING NO ONE HAS EVER HAD THE PRIVILEGE TO WITNESS! PREPARE TO WITNESS A NIGHTMARE BEYOND THE HORRORS OF HELL! THE EMPEROR OF THE UNIVERSE AT 100% OF HIS IMMEASURABLE, INCOMPREHENSIBLE POWER!"

"YES!" Saitama grinned in delight; this was what he had been waiting for so long! "That's what I like to hear! Take all the time you need! I want to fight you at your very best!"

A small round of chuckles was given as a response. "Excited, are we? Well then, DON'T SAY I DIDN'T WARN YOU!" The atmosphere grew heavier, and the wind whipped in anticipation for what was to come. Once again, the ground quaked around everyone, except this time, it was ten times more forceful than any other quakes before. The force was so powerful, the vibrations expanded further outward, spanning out from miles on end, managing to even knock people off their feet in A-city and B-city.

All of the spectators looked up in the sky, and realized that a series of dark grey clouds were swirling in the sky, hovering above Frieza. Everyone's hearts constricted and their lines pursed downward at this sight.

"Saitama!" Atomic Samurai cupped his hands around his mouth and shouted out to the bald hero on the battlefield. "This is your chance! You can finish the job before he can achieve maximum power!"

"Nope! Not gonna happen!"

The samurai let out a stutter. Did he just hear him correctly?

"Saitama!" The next to shout out to the hero was Bang. "This monster is unlike anything we've ever faced before! Each of his power-ups has unleashed devastating consequences! We have no idea what's going to happen if he reaches 100%!"

"Master! I regret saying this, but they are correct!" Saitama's disciple shouted out to his master, surprising both Saitama and himself, since he never contradicted his master on absolutely anything. "He is too dangerous! End this while you still have the chance!" Saitama didn't even lift a finger.

The heroes exchanged looks of confusion and incomprehension. What the hell was Saitama doing?

Instantaneously, a bolt of lightning came down from the sky and Frieza; but somehow, instead of damaging Frieza, it actually served to bulk up the muscles in his body. That wasn't a good sign.

"Dude! Don't be a freaking idiot!" It was Metal Bat who spoke up this time. "Are you seriously just gonna sit there and let him buff up like that?!"

"This isn't a smart move!" yelled Garou, "Letting your opponent get the advantage like this can only end badly!"

"Are you mental?!" shouted Tatsumaki, "Look, I get being overconfident now and then, but this is pushing it! This is crazy!"

"ENOUGH!" All of the spectators were shunned silent when they heard this forceful command from Saitama, whose stoic face was replaced with frustration and aggravation. "None of you understand! Ever since I've obtained this power, it's like a black hole has formed inside my heart, sucking out all my emotions and leaving only a hollow shell of my former self! You have no idea how long I've waited for an opportunity like this: for the chance to feel the exhilaration of a real fight! And not you or anybody else is gonna stop me!"

Nobody could give a proper response; they were too shocked and rather perturbed that Saitama would risk this kind of danger merely for his own selfish gains. Even Genos was taken aback by his master's brazen and reckless attitude; it was a side of him he had never seen before.

"Either way, I'm still gonna kick this guy's ass." Saitama's thunderous voice toned down to a regular speaking voice. "There's no way in hell I'd eve lose to a monster; not now, not ever again."

Everyone had no understanding of Saitama's motives and newfound stubbornness to see Frieza at 100%. Well, everyone except the Saiyan General spectating the fight from afar. To Nappa, it made perfect sense; this was the fiery spirit of a warrior showing itself. The intense willpower and hunger for battle had taken over; if Nappa was in Saitama's situation, he'd be doing the exact same thing. And besides, Nappa had no doubt who would be the victor.

"Saitama... Defeat this bastard and avenge all the saiyans slaughtered by his hands." whispered Nappa, "Do it for me. I won't have it any other way."

Lightning stirred in the vortex of clouds. Cobbles were floating several feet in the air, and the sky itself was trembling in the wake of the space emperor's power. Frieza could feel it within him: the final restraints of power were being removed, the colossal energy locked away was now flowing throughout his body, giving him strength he had never once imagined would ever need. Thoughts were running rampant in his brain.

"Bastard. To think he could push me to the brink like this! It's inconceivable! It's unbelievable. No, it's absolutely unacceptable!" The bald hero was standing motionless, his eyes appearing like piercing daggers, yet his lips curved up into a smile. "He's taking joy in this?! I will not allow it!

"My empire has no bounds, and will not be stopped by some bald, daft dotard like this! !" His voice was blasting within his mind, audible to no one but himself, "My name is Lord Frieza! I have attained strength unparalleled throughout the cosmos! I am the Emperor of the Universe, and all who come under my rule will come to accept it and kneel before my will. That is why... That is why..."

"THAT IS WHY I WILL NOT LOSE HERE!"

...Something was happening. Inside the dark, ruthless heart of the space emperor, a spark ignited. That spark soon became a raging inferno, consuming Frieza from within. It was something Frieza had never once experienced in his life. He felt as if his spirit was shifting, becoming engrossed in this flame.

Everyone gasped; in an instant, Frieza's blue aura changed into an obsidian-black mass of energy. Black electricity sparked to life around the lizard, and simultaneously, the energy around Frieza began to warp, increasing in size and ferocity.

All of the spectators looked on with worried faces; something wasn't right. Even Saitama himself felt a change in the atmosphere, as if something... sinister had just been unleashed. Frieza released a hair-raising, horrific, nightmarish, ear-piercing screech that destroyed all of the rock floor around him and pushed Saitama back a few feet, as well as the other onlookers.

"WHAT THE FUCK IS HAPPENING?!" screamed Garou.

"I DON'T KNOW," shouted Metal Bat, "BUT WHATEVER IT IS, IT'S INTENSE!"

All across Frieza, the veins in his body began to turn crimson red. First was at his heart, but soon, this change began to expand through his body in all directions, until every vein in the lizard was now pitch black. Next, an explosion of red came forth, combining with the pitch-dark aura to form a swirling vortex of overwhelming force. Next, the purple center became onyx; just as with the veins, this onyx color spread like a virus, until every inch of Frieza's body was covered in this black color.

The final change was perhaps the most horrific: spikes began to protrude out of the several spots of the lizard's body. First, at the tip of his elbows, two spikes about one and a half inches in length splintered out, slightly curving at the tip. On the sides of his head, two black horns popped out. With the final depths of his transformation complete, out came forth an insanely bright burst of light. The intensity of this was so bright, not only was the entire landscape covered in this light, but the entire northern hemisphere of the planet lit up. From the outskirts of the planet's atmosphere, it seemed that the top half of the planet was completely white.

After a few seconds, the intensity of the light began to wane, and visibility was restored, although what would be revealed was perhaps an even worse fate in-and-of-itself. The bystanders recovered from the blinding flash, and slowly uncovered their eyes to see what had transpired.

On the battlefield, Saitama's happy grin had disappeared, and his serious expression now showed itself. The hero's heart was pounding, goosebumps were crawling all over his skin, and a chill ran down his back.

"Something huge has come."

The understatement of the century. The Emperor of the Universe was encased in a flowing swirl of red and black aura, acting like an intense fire. Frieza's pupils were now blood-red, and his skin was jet-black. Frieza was showing his pearly whites, which for some odd reason were the only things not either black or red, and his hands were calmly at his sides. His frame was much more muscular; Saitama could see the defining lines of muscle and the added height acquired from his new power-up. The tip of his tail had become balled with several spikes encased around it. The transformation served him better as a being of his standing in the universe's pecking order. For a few moments, there was nothing; the intensity of the moment was simply too much to overcome. After what appeared to be an eternity, the Emperor of the Universe uttered three words:

"You're in for it now."

* * *

 _What is this? What's going on? This isn't Golden Frieza, but it's not like any other transformation seen before. So what could it be? And guys, THIS IS NOT 5TH FORM FRIEZA! That already exists; look up Frieza and on Dragon Ball wiki, you'll see the image of his 5th form, which isn't anything like what is described. SO STOP ASKING! Well, I guess you'll just have to wait and see the power of this new form in the next chapter of The Space Emperor's Besiege!_


	26. Concursus Titanis: Part III

**What's up everybody? I'm back with the climactic conclusion between Frieza and Saitama, and for all you hungry fans waiting anxiously for this next chapter, it's finally here! And it's a long one too, so I hope that makes up for the 2 month wait. Now sit back and watch this chapter unfold!**

* * *

"You're in for it now."

The aura and the intensity emanating around Frieza was astounding. It was as if he was an entirely different person. The spectators were at a loss; what did this new transformation mean? Was this the true power Frieza had kept hidden all this time?

In the sky, Zarbon and the Ginyus were just as bewildered as the Earthlings. "What's happened to Lord Frieza?" said Guldo.

"I'm not sure," replied Zarbon, "Captain Ginyu, do you know anything of this?" The Captain silently shook his head. "As far as I know, this form is entirely new; I've never seen Frieza beyond a state in his ultimate form."

"So then what the hell happened to him?" said Recoome.

"I have no idea..." was all Captain Ginyu could respond with. What had become of Lord Frieza? What was coming?

The only ones who had even the slightest grasp of the gravity of this situation were Saitama and Nappa. But for Nappa, this turn of events rocked his brain. This new energy Nappa was sensing was unlike anything he'd ever felt. The malevolence, the pressure, the fury, it had all skyrocketed to the point of causing him mild disorientation. It was simply too much for his brain to handle.

"You better be ready, Saitama."

* * *

The flowers were eerily still in God's dimension, and the sky was as cardinal as ever. The explosive growth Frieza experienced was insane, and this transformation Frieza had undergone was something God never thought would be possible. However, unlike the rest of the insects on the battlefield, God actually knew the cause of it.

"It's utterly astounding; just when I thought Frieza was at his limit, when the severity of his injuries would finally catch up with him, when all hope would be lost, he managed to surpass his limit, just like I'd hoped."

"But how could this have happened so quickly? More importantly, how could such a large increase of power occur? I expected it to be grandiose, but not this grandiose! Nearly all of the humans have been killed when subjected to this level of domination, and even for those who can survive, it takes months, no, YEARS, for them to achieve this kind of limitless growth in power. It appears that Frieza managed to surpass the feeling of death enough times for his body to undergo a transformation.

God shook his head. "No, that wasn't all. This was more than just the physical pain he endured, and even more than his high willpower. For all of his life, Frieza has never known the possibility of failure or the concept of humiliation. Being so utterly dominated by Saitama, this was an experience he'd never encountered before. To be forced into a corner like an animal surrounded by a hunter for the first time, it is a truly terrible experience. But it's when an organism is cornered like this, pushed this close to death and defeat, they become desperate. They are willing to do whatever it takes to win, removing any physical and psychological limitations they might have put on themselves and giving it everything they have.

"This, combined with Frieza's already-massive energy level, his power-up to 100%, his status as a mutant prodigy, and the ancient energy of this planet that amplifies any emotional, physical, or psychological changes of the inhabitants, all of these things served as the fuel for this groundbreaking transformation. Yes, that has to be the answer."

The monster's cackle reverberated across the barren field. "Saitama has no idea what he's in for."

* * *

In the Tako-yaki restaurant thousands of miles away, Dr. Genus, Zombieman, and Armored Gorilla were speaking with one another. Zombieman knew better than to trust Dr. Genus' words; he knew the doctor's sick, twisted mind firsthand, and found it hard to believe he would just give up on his pursuit of evolution so easily.

"It's been ten years. I figured you would search for me and exact your revenge one day," said Dr. Genus, his voice showing no indication of panic, "You've become a hero... Quite the remarkable change."

Having had enough of this casual conversation, Zombieman pushed himself off the ground, and grabbed an axe hidden beneath his trench-coat. The immortal hero held the axe above his head, getting ready to slice the doctor's head like an apple. Sweat beads began to fall down the doctor's face, but his eyes still did not display true terror. "You want to kill me? So be it; with my facility destroyed, my motivation has disappeared." Zombieman shot the doctor a dirty look, still mistrustful of Dr. Genus' words.

"How was the House of Evolution erased?" questioned Zombieman, "As long as you remain alive, you can rebuild the House as many times as you please. So why did you stop then?" Dr. Genus didn't respond at first.

"ANSWER ME, DR. GENUS!" shouted Zombieman. For a few moments, he remained silent. Then, he softly spoke, "He suddenly appeared before me. A man who had attained a power that far surpassed my artificial evolution. All of my work, all of my discoveries, they paled in comparison to his might. That's the conclusion I have reached.

"He has... removed his limiter."

Zombieman's eyebrows scrunched up in confusion. "Limiter? What are you talking about?"

"Every living thing has a limit of how much they can grow. Too much power can create many issues; for instance, they could become a mindless, rampaging beast enthralled with bloodlust and incapable of understanding anything beyond his animalistic instincts. That's why God created a range of growth for each being so they maintain their mental sanity and ensure their survival. This growth restriction is called a limiter.

"However, this man has managed to train well beyond his limit and successfully removed his limiter!"

The facial features of Zombieman's began to soften as he took these words into consideration, "So what you are telling me is that there was someone who obtained power that was strong enough to obliterate your entire ideology? Someone who could obtain that kind of power without any costs actually exists?"

Dr. Genus shook his head. "No, he paid a hefty price for it.

"In exchange for his enormous power, he became bald, and he felt an immense sense of alienation from his previous self, and a creeping feeling of tedium and loss has changed him, leaving him bland and emotionless."

"Hold on..." This description rang a bell to Zombieman. He was sure he had seen someone with a bald head and bland expression rather recently. But where?

"Did this man have a yellow tracksuit and white cape with red gloves and boots?"

"Why yes, he did."

That's when it hit him. "I know him! He's the B-class hero who was just promoted to S-class Rank 4! He's been called a hero swindler by the public because he always eliminates threats right after S-class heroes have faced them. But if what you're saying is true, then..." Zombieman dropped back to the ground as the pieces were being put together in his head. "Then everything the public believes is a lie. I thought his promotion to S-class was merely a mistake, yet it appears I was wrong. Could there perhaps..."

Zombieman vigorously shook his head. "No! That barely means anything! Yes, perhaps he is powerful, but I know of quite a few monstrous ones who completely disregard the limits of their abilities."

"No; he is on a completely different level than what you imagine.

"Humans become monsters due to a desire for power, a change in form, or merely bad habits. As a result, a cellular anomaly is produced in their bodies and morphs their form. Other monsters are created through genetic engineering, such as with my research. However, all of these things have nothing to do with removing their limiter. While it is true that an increased level of power is obtained, a new limiter is placed on their bodies. Heroes, on the other hand, are beings who already possessed innate abilities that could be drawn out through talent or training. But, he is different...

"An ordinary person, with no special talents or skills given to him at birth, through sheer effort and willpower alone, pried through the doors of his limits and broke his limiter."

"So you're saying that through training, one could attain the same level of po-" A faint sound filled Zombieman's hears, causing to pause mid-sentence. Dr. Genus noticed Zombieman's eyes harden, and tilted his head in confusion. "What is the problem?"

"I can hear several footsteps outside. Can't you?" Dr. Genus concentrated to hear what Zombieman was talking about, and sure enough, he could hear the pitter patter of many feet outside his restaurant.

"Perhaps it could be eager customers?" said Armored Gorilla.

"No; our restaurant has never been this popular. And besides, why would people want to come eat at a time like this?"

Zombieman pulled out his signature Desert Eagle from his pocket. "Well then let's find out."

The trio walked out of the room and stepped out into the street, and they gasped; standing a few meters from the entrance of the Tako-yaki shop, dozens of humanoid-looking beings with matching outfits were gathering. The three looked up, and saw that a few more were flying down from the sky to join their comrades. Each of the soldiers varied greatly in appearance, with only a few appearing like regular humans.

From the thralling mass of unknown humanoids, a single individual with a long face and brown, spiky hair walked in front of the group, staring at the three of them with a serious face and his hands clenched into fists at his sides. He was the only one in the group who did not have a blaster on his wrist.

Zombieman pointed his pistol at the individual and shouted, "Who are you? What is your purpose here?"

"My name is Karmath. We are soldiers of the Galactic Frieza Army. Our Master, Lord Frieza, came to this mudball in search of a bald warrior of unparalleled might."

"Hold on..." A bald warrior? "Don't tell me..." Coupled with the personal testimony Dr. Genus gave about a bald man with overwhelming strength, it was safe to assume that the warrior their master had come in search for and the bald man Dr. Genus described were one in the same. His thoughts lingered on what else the person described; he used both the words "galactic" and "mudball", implying that they were from space, and if that was the case...

All the pieces clicked together: these were soldiers of the God-level monster the other S-class heroes were currently fighting. But something still wasn't fitting into this whole picture...

"If your master has come in search of the warrior you spoke of, then why have you come here?"

The alien smirked. "My partner Orlen and I were scouting the human population of this city, when we came across you and your big friend over there with the white sweater. We saw you trailing him, and we decided to follow suit until you arrived at this shop. We started eavesdropping on your conversation, and learned that you were actually immortal. Not only that, but your creator is here as well. Can you imagine the reward we'll receive if we capture you both? We could give our master the key to immortality!" Karmath held his palm out toward Zombieman, and from it, a ball of red energy formed. "So, are you going to come quietly? Or are we gonna have to bring you in pieces."

Zombieman cocked the pistol and met Karmath's gaze with a stern intensity. "If you can."

* * *

Frieza still hadn't made a move. Shortly after speaking, he fell into a deathly silence and began staring at body, inspecting it to observe all of the changes that occurred after this transformation. Truth be told, he hadn't a clue what just happened. One moment, he felt a fiery surge of willpower flare up, and the next moment, he felt that fiery surge explode inside him. Even now, he felt that power coursing through his veins, giving him power he never thought could exist.

"Perhaps a demonstration is in order..." Frieza decided to test this newfound power out with a simple punch. So, he craned his right arm back behind his back, formed his hand into a fist, and punched the air. The effect was astonishing; a gust of wind blew from his fist, causing Saitama to hold his elbows in front of his face and sending him back a few meters. The Space emperor's eyes widened, and his mouth slightly opened up in amazement. "What raw strength! Could this transformation have increased my power this much?"

"Hey!" Saitama shouted to Frieza, causing him to look up. "Are you done checking yourself out?"

"What? Are you jealous?" replied Frieza.

Saitama scoffed. "I gotta hand it to you, you do kind of look like a badass."

"Indeed, such a grandiose change is badass."

"But this planet's only got room for one badass."

Frieza's mouth stretched out in a wide smile. "I couldn't agree more. So why don't we end the confectionaries and let round 3 start?"

As a response, Saitama cracked his knuckles and his neck simultaneously; the final, climactic battle between the strongest hero on the planet and the emperor of the universe was about to commence. Everything that the heroes had been waiting for had finally come to full fruition; all of the hero spectators were shaking in their boots both in fear and anticipation for whatever was to come.

Saitama bent his knees and sprung first. He slammed Frieza with a very hard right hook across Frieza's face. The force of the blow created large gusts of wind, managing to crack the ground below both of them and lifted rocks off the ground. Saitama's fist was indented in Frieza's cheek, yet this time, Frieza didn't wince or groan in any sort of pain. Frieza moved his face to stare at Saitama, all-the-while slyly grinning.

"Your love taps won't work anymore." The level of power Saitama put in his punch was the same as before, yet his punch now felt like an actual love tap. It was unbelievable! Frieza grabbed Saitama's wrist and ripped his hand off of his cheek. Frieza let out a boisterous bellow, taking command of his rage and his newfound power like the mighty weapon it was, and proceeded to kick Saitama in his stomach. Frieza's foot was surrounded by air friction and a light aura of black energy. Frieza's eyes widened in astonishment; once again, Frieza was amazed at this amazing increase of power, not only in terms of strength but speed as well. Just then, the speed of his kick had far surpassed anything he could have done, even at his previous maximum power. It was like he had a jumbo jet on his leg.

Yet something else had occurred on the other side, something that seemed benign in comparison to many, yet was shocking to Saitama: for the first ever, the bald hero actually felt pain. His hand was clutching his stomach, and his knees were slightly bent down. The pain wasn't overwhelming, not at all, but it was still there nonetheless; he hadn't felt this strength from an attack before, even against Boros. A dual-flow of emotions were filling up Saitama: on one hand, there was the pain in his stomach, but that was utterly, overwhelmingly eclipsed by the glimmer of hope dawning in Saitama's sullied heart. For the first time in what seemed like an eternity, an enemy was able to deal a blow that didn't feel like a joke of a love tap.

"Damn Frieza!" Saitama instantaneously recovered from the blow and smirked at Frieza, "Your power-up wasn't just for show! I felt that kick!"

"It is a pretty grandiose power-up, isn't it? And I still have ample room to grow!" Low-pitched chuckles came out of Frieza's mouth. "Oh-hoh-hoh... You'll pay for your impertinent attitude against me in the worst possible way. All of the damage will be repaid 10 fold. No, 100 fold!" His smile disappeared, and all of the rage building up in him bubbled to the surface once more. Then, the Space Emperor disappeared from sight. He momentarily reappeared, then disappeared instantly. The speed and rate at which Frieza was popping in and out of sight made it appear as if he was teleporting. Well, that's what it looked like to all of the spectators, but to Saitama's eyes, Frieza was simply moving fast. Saitama quickly followed suit, and before they knew it, both fighters were out of sight.

None of the spectators had even the slightest grasp of the battle taking place; the speed of both fighters was so amazing, not even a blur of their bodies was visible. All they saw were invisible bursts of air from the points of contact, except the rate at which they could see and hear these blows was worlds beyond anything they had witnessed before. Saitama threw a string of punches at Frieza, but Frieza was able to dodge them with much more ease than before. With the next punch, Frieza took hold of Saitama's wrist and brought him in close. Frieza followed up with a series of very hard headbutts. With these headbutts, the repeated strikes actually began to sting Saitama's forehead.

"Get off of me!"

"All you had to do was ask." Frieza released his grip from Saitama, catching him off guard with this bizarre move, but Saitama should have known better after fighting against Frieza for so long. Frieza, being the dirty fighter he was, whipped Saitama with his spiked tail up his chin. He then twirled around and struck Saitama with a right spin kick. Saitama blocked it with his elbow, but the power in Frieza's kick was still powerful enough to send him sailing a few hundred feet across the sky, crashing into a rock formation. Frieza held his right hand out, and fired a red ball of energy. When the ball was released, it began to grow as it soared through the air. The red energy ball exploded upon contact, sending all the rocks up in the air and vaporizing a great portion of them in the process. For a second, the ground was motionless, but then, Saitama jumped out unharmed, looking a bit peeved however.

"God, you and your fancy little energy attacks!" shouted Saitama, "You think you're so cool! Well you're not the only one who can pull tricks up your non-existent sleeve!" The bald hero bent his knees and curled his hands into fists. "Try this on for size."

Saitama dug his fingers into the ground and took a great heave. The ground began to shake; cracks began to form in the ground, spanning several hundred feet. Frieza's eyebrows raised up, his eyes cautiously observing the fissures forming on the ground below. Despite this, the lizard's composure would not be tested so easily, especially with this new power-up. The heroes nervously eyed each other, all of them unsure what Saitama was intending to do, and all of them shocked that Saitama could create such fissures by merely pulling on the ground. Shortly after, an absolutely monstrous chunk of the Earth was ripped out of the ground. It was hard to determine the exact size, but it was around the size of the boulder Frieza had hurled at Saitama not too long ago, perhaps a little bigger, maybe 30% larger. With a hefty tug, Saitama finished tearing it out of the ground and put the rock over his head. Saitama was inhaling and exhaling deeply, remaining calm despite the gargantuan rock he had above his head. Truth be told, he never tried to lift something this big, but he could handle it.

"Yea, it's not so bad...

"NOW WE'LL SEE HOW YOU LIKE IT!" With a deep breath and a hefty shout, the bald hero threw the massive boulder right at Frieza. The spectators were at a loss for words, all of them too baffled at not only the size of the boulder, but that Saitama could throw something like that, and at such high speeds no less.

Even with this fortifying display of physical prowess, Frieza's composure was not being tested. No, even as the massive island was hurtling straight toward him, he knew that this newfound power would protect him, give him the strength he needed to win this fight. In fact, Frieza decided to try something a little different out, to flash his strength right in everyone's faces.

"YYYYAAAHHHHH!" Frieza held his hand out in front of the gargantuan boulder, and as it was about to pummel him into oblivion, Frieza did something nobody was expecting: Frieza actually caught it with his bare hands. But wait! Instead of stopping it midair, he actually went with the momentum of the boulder; he proceeded to change its direction, twirling it around him like an athlete would in a shot put competition. After spinning the boulder around him about 2 dozen times, the speed had practically doubled from before. Even Frieza was impressed by this.

"I LIKE IT THIS MUCH!" With a hefty throw and a boisterous shout, the Space Emperor chucked the boulder right back at Saitama. Genos and the rest of the fighters gasped, their eyes wide with terror for Saitama.

"Master! Get out of there!" shouted Genos.

The bald hero was, in fact, disappointed. Disappointed in Genos for doubting his master. I mean, Genos saw Saitama destroy a meteor; how was this any different? Saitama braced himself, hardened his face and, with only a single punch, shattered the boulder into millions of tiny pieces. On the sidelines, the Saiyan General chuckled in amusement; he could see that Saitama was beginning to enjoy himself, just a little bit. Perhaps he was wrong in what he sensed in Frieza; maybe Saitama really had this one in the bag.

Suddenly, the millions of separate rocks in the air began to hover. Next, they were trimmed down until they were millions of daggers all pointed at Saitama. Frieza's hands were raised up in the air, the confident smirk plastered on the lizard's face. He flicked his fingers, and like that, the millions of stone daggers all went speeding straight at Saitama.

"This again?" muttered Saitama, "You really are an idiot." The bald hero calmly prepared himself and shattered all of the stone daggers that came his way. On the sidelines, the homosexual hero gave a quizzical look. "Are all of Frieza's daggers missing?" he asked.

Garou shook his head. "No, Saitama is just punching all of them down at a hyper-speed that our eyes can't perceive."

Once Puri-Puri-Prisoner wrapped his head around the concept, he let out a small gasp of amazement. "Wow..."

While all the other spectators were paying attention to Saitama, Tatsumaki's attention was directed to Frieza. While the others may not have realized this, Frieza's psychic powers had amplified significantly. She could sense the power of other espers, and with what she was sensing now, his psychic powers could actually rival her own, perhaps even exceed it, as much as she hated to admit it. "This isn't good..." Tatsumaki silently muttered this to herself, so nobody else was able to catch this. "If his psychic powers have increased by this much," thought Tatsumaki," There's no telling how much more powerful he's become in terms of strength and energy projection."

"God, baldy, I hope you know what you're doing."

Back on the battlefield, Saitama was able to pick up on the increased speed of his psychic abilities just like Tatsumaki had, but unlike Tatsumaki, this didn't worry him. On the contrary, it only served to excite him even more. Saitama was still playing around with Frieza; he hadn't even begun to test his new speed or strength yet, so if Frieza had more to show, he was all-ears.

About 10 seconds later, Frieza had run out of daggers to throw at Saitama, and the ground was now littered with tiny pebbles. In an unexpected move, Frieza began applauding his opponent, earning the confusion of everyone watching the fight. "Bravo, my friend! It seems you were able to handle my onslaught of daggers just as easily as before!"

"Yea well, I think I managed to break a sweat!" shouted Saitama.

"Oh, you'll be breaking a little more than a sweat after I'm done with you... For you see, that was just a warm up. In truth, I'm only just getting started?"

"Well whatddya know? Then I guess we should stop with the play time and move on up to the big leagues?"

"Indeed, we should."

* * *

On the other side of the globe, the confrontation between the House of Evolution and the Frieza Force was just beginning to dawn. Karmath and Zombieman continues to stare each other down, allowing for the tense atmosphere to further heighten.

"Take this!" Karmath sped up toward Zombieman. Instantaneously, Zombieman pulled the trigger on his Desert Eagle and fired three rounds before Karmath reached him. The Frieza soldier launched a left uppercut that Zombieman narrowly avoided, countering with a right jab to Karmath's chest. Alas, Karmath grabbed Zombieman's fist and twisted it very hard.

"AHHHH!" yelled Zombieman in pain. The undead hero reached inside his trench coat and grabbed his sharp curved katana. With a smooth slice, he swung his katana across Karmath's armor, carving through it and soliciting a yelp of pain.

"LET'S GET'EM!" shouted one of the Frieza soldiers.

"YYYAAAAAAHHHHHHHH!" The foot-soldiers all marched onward in an adrenaline-filled swarm.

Dr. Genus turned his head and stared at Armored Gorilla. The cybernetic primate realized the scientist's gaze upon him and looked down to meet his stare.

"Attack," said Dr. Genus blatantly, "But remember to not get carried away."

Armored Gorilla nodded. "As you wish, Doctor. Make sure to find a safe place to hide so these aliens don't get a hold of you."

"Very well." Dr. Genus hurried back into his shop, leaving his two creations to fight alone.

The primate grabbed his white sweatshirt and ripped it off his body, revealing his armored exoskeleton. From the suit, a helmet formed and covered his face, thus completing his suit of armor.

"FOR THE HOUSE OF EVOLUTION!" The gorilla sprinted to face the army of soldiers, facing them head-on like a gorilla would do in the wild. The first dozen foot-soldiers that came into Armored Gorilla's proximity were launched several feet into the air with a single swipe of his arm. The next dozen came to a screeching halt, the adrenaline fueling them quickly being replaced by fear.

"Fire your blasters!" shouted Karmath, still in battle with Zombieman. The foot-soldiers did as he said and prepped their blasters. But before they could fire them, Armored Gorilla smashed the ground and tossed dozens of large rocks at the soldiers, knocking the first wave off the ground. The mighty primate jumped into the air and prepared to smash the entire army away, but he was met with an onslaught of red energy blasts from the soldiers who were still standing.

A smaller group of the soldiers was running to aid Karmath in the battle. Zombieman saw them charging toward him and fired his Desert Eagle at the soldiers. To his surprise, the soldiers were unaffected by the bullets, which merely crumpled up against their armor.

"It appears projectiles have no effect on them," muttered Zombieman, " I suppose I'll have to rely on my melee weapons."

"I'm taking you down!" screamed one of the soldiers. He jumped up to kick Zombieman, but the hero easily dodged his attack and, with a single slice, severed the soldier into two. A group of five soldiers all charged Zombieman at once, punching and kicking him simultaneously in an attempt to overwhelm him. The hero was unfazed, however, and easily dodged their attacks, countering them with his blade and landing several deep cuts on the soldiers.

Meanwhile, the multitudinous number of blasts caused the gorilla to quickly stop his midair attack and made him fall to the ground. Armored Gorilla put his elbows up to defend himself from the energy blasts. He advanced step-by-step, his upped defense allowing him to take the force of the attacks without considerable damage.

"Your attacks have minimal effect," said Armored Gorilla, "You cannot win!" The cybernetic gorilla pushed his arms out and nullified all of the energy blasts, leaving the soldiers dumb-struck. The demon-level monster pummeled at least 6 soldiers with a right hook; he then grabbed two soldiers by the face, and began spinning around rapidly. Armored Gorilla was mowing down the horde of soldiers, sending them crashing into stone walls and glass windows. Once he felt he'd done enough, he banged the heads of the soldiers he had in his hands together, and dropped them on the ground with a silent thud.

"Jesus Christ..." whispered Orlen, "This guy brings a whole new meaning to "Going Ape Shit". We're gonna have to bring in some help, or else Lord Frieza's gonna have to take a trip to Space Mexico."

* * *

With that witty exchange of insults out of the way, the two warriors disappeared from sight yet again. For a few moments, the two of them were invisible, but this time, they reappeared more quickly, exchanging a pair of fast-paced punches. The punches were so fast, all they could see was a giant blur of black and red in between them. After a brief moment of this, Frieza then kneed him in the stomach and sent him back flying several hundred feet. The Space Emperor jumped horizontally, flying through the air at crazy speeds, so fast, in fact, that Saitama barely had time to block Frieza's fist with his own. As a result, they were now locked in a battle of fists, both of them trying to gain dominance over the other, yet neither of them gaining a decisive advantage. The friction was enormous; lightning began to splint out from the fighters, and cobbles rose to the ground as they did before. Frieza's obsidian ki was glowing even brighter, expanding outwards.

Immediately after, Saitama began to lose ground, his fist being pushed back by Frieza's. "What the..." Was Frieza actually overwhelming him? This was a first.

"GRAH!" Saitama yelled angrily and increased the force in his fist, managing to even the playing field again. The spark of fury shone in Saitama's eyes, catching the attention of Frieza. This was the first time he had ever seen Saitama show any signs of aggravation, which meant he was doing something right.

"It seems I managed to get a rise out of you! The invincible One Punch Man actually struggling?!" mocked Frieza.

"Nah, I'm just trying to give you a false sense of confidence so you don't start bawling once I kick your ass!" replied Saitama.

"Oh-hoh..." Saitama noticed the veins on Frieza's head throbbing, the energy surrounding him distorting and amplifying. "YOU BALD BASTARD!"

Red energy pumped up from his elbow, with a bright surge of this energy glowing on his hand, giving it even more strength. The sheer power now vesseled in the fist was too much for Saitama to handle, and in less than a second, the energy from his hand exploded. Saitama was blown back several hundred feet, tossed around like a rag doll, until he slowed down enough to a gentle slide across the rock ground.

"Master!" Genos yelled out in concern. Never, once, had he ever seen his master knocked back by an opponent. Such a thing was unprecedented for him. Likewise, a wave of mild panic ran through the other fighters, and they shifted nervously in their places.

Frieza let out a hearty laugh, all-the-while slowly pacing toward his opponent, who was pushing himself off the ground. "My my! An unexpected turn of events! What is the hero to do? Accept defeat and bow to his master? A move that has sadly long expired."

"Damn right it has!" The faint sound of drops filled his ears. He looked down, and realized that there were drops of blood on the ground. He touched his forehead, and slightly gasped when he saw the red staining his fingers. This all seemed very familiar to him: being knocked back, blood being drawn for the first time, and his bulky, empowered opponent standing above him just after he knocked Saitama back.

Yes! The memory came back to him. His serious expression disappeared, and the bald hero managed to let out a chuckle of amusement. Frieza's right eyebrow raised up. "What's so funny? Did that last attack knock the sense out of you?"

"No." Saitama looked up at Frieza and smirked, "You see, I had a dream a few months back where an army of Subterranean people invaded the surface, and I had to kill them all single-handedly. Ironically, not only was that the only time in 3 years I ever fought seriously, but this moment right now is almost exactly the same as that memory, and if the history of my memory serves as any guide, I'm gonna end the fight with THIS!" Saitama pulled his right arm back and, with a loud yell, punched Frieza with a hard right jab, identical to how he first attacked in his dream. Though this time, instead of guts spilling out of his opponent's back, the mighty lizard took the full brunt of the blow, showing no signs of strain. Saitama's eyes widened, having trouble believing what he just witnessed. "What the hell? You're still alive?"

An amused chuckle came out of Frieza's mouth. "Quite impressive, isn't it?"

"It is," replied Saitama, "It means I can do this!"

"Two Handed Consecutive Normal Punches!" Saitama launched a speedy-quick volley of punches from both of his hands instead of his typical right hand. In response, Frieza blocked every single of the punches, with only two fingers for the matter. The force from Saitama's punches created gusts of wind that reached all of the spectators, as well as creating more cracks in the ground. Then, Saitama lifted his leg and struck Frieza with the heel of his right boot. Frieza caught his foot midair and spun it around, causing Saitama to twirl around at amazing speeds and making it appear as if he was a yellow spinning log. As a follow up, Frieza slammed Saitama downward and grabbed his neck with his tail, lifting him up about half a foot off the ground.

"How about another neck massage? The only thing you're gonna have to pay me with this time is your life, but it's not like it's worth that much, so hey! You got yourself a steal!" Saitama attempted to break free from Frieza's grip, but he couldn't. The pressure of Frieza's tail wrapped around his neck was crazy strong, worlds stronger than his grip before.

"Kidney Punch!" Taking this moment to exact a small portion of revenge, Frieza punched Saitama in the kidney, causing him to grunt in agony, spitting out saliva in the process.

"Kidney punch! Kidney Punch! Kidney Punch, and pause!" Frieza momentarily stopped his cruel jabs, and immediately resumed them. "Kidney Punch!"

"Alright, that's it!" Saitama, having had enough of this abuse, stretched his arms behind his back in preparation for one of his more powerful moves.

"Killer Move, Serious Series: Serious Clap!" Saitama clapped his hands as hard as he could; the effect was instantaneous. An unrelenting surge of wind came forth from Saitama's hands, and the strength of the wind was strong enough for Frieza to release his grip on Saitama. "Now you've done it!" Saitama lunged for Frieza, the speed at which he traveled being fast enough to lift the debris up from the ground, and punched Frieza, being too angry to say the name of his attack beforehand. Saitama's fists were a big blur of red, and Saitama's expressionless face was now filled with annoyance and frustration. Saitama stopped his flurry of punches and swept Frieza's feet from under him. Frieza stuck his hand out to the ground and spun his body like a spinning top. With this rotating motion, he knocked Saitama off his feet and, while he was still falling, nailed him hard in his stomach. Saitama's eyes bulged out, and his hands immediately went to his gut.

"Emperor's Death Beam!" From his fingertip, Frieza fired a red energy beam that hit Saitama's forehead. Then, a flurry of Death Beams were released from his fingertip and targeted Saitama. Saitama lunged up to Frieza before the Death Beams had the chance to reach him and landed a right hook on his left cheek. Frieza was momentarily stunned by the blow, but he countered by gripping both his hands together and slamming down on Saitama's head. Saitama lifted his elbows up to block the attack; the force of the attacks sunk the two down several meters. Saitama clenched his teeth and swept Frieza from under him. The fiery-hot willpower burned in Saitama's eyes, and with a loud shout, he punched Frieza in the center of his chest. While Frieza was still flying in the air, Saitama jumped up to continue his attack. The Space Emperor met his attack, however, and another quick exchange of punches occurred midair.

"It's coming..." The blood in his cold, lifeless heart was starting to pump intensely. The wild throbbing in his heart... Yes! It was happening again! The feeling of euphoria was coursing through his veins; the rush was blessing him with life anew! The heat of the battle, the sensation of fighting such a worthy opponent, all of these these were overflowing within him, setting his soul on fire. His dream was a dream no more: the reality of his dispiriting existential crisis was finally solved! This was just like his battle with the Subterraneans. No, this was even better!

"I've finally got it!" screamed Saitama, "I'M FINALLY BACK!" With his bubbling joy, Saitama ended the exchange of punches by elbowing Frieza square in his nose, sending him crashing back into the ground. Saitama rotated his body and punched the air, creating a wind current that send him blowing down to Frieza's position. He then rotated back and punched the ground just gently enough to slow his descent and let him land with a gentle thud.

"How'd you like that!" shouted Saitama, who was standing over Frieza with his arms crossed and his chin held high. The Space Emperor placed both his palms on the ground and pushed himself up and getting himself back on his feet.

"Hold on..." Something was wrong. Saitama couldn't quite pin it, but he felt Frieza was having a little too much fun. Even after getting serious and beginning to showcase his true power, Frieza was still acting calm, despite taking all those blows from Saitama. Hell, Frieza wasn't even frowning; his lips were forming a small smile. And then, to make matters even worse, he started slow clapping. "Uh-oh," thought Saitama.

"Congratulations! You graduated from pull-ups! Maybe I'll give you a juice box and a little sticker with a turtle saying, "Slow and steady all the way!" as a little present!"

"Cute," replied Saitama.

"But as enjoyable as it's been being tossed around like a used condom, I think the time has come to end this battle, I'm afraid.

"Oh really? Well let's say I disagree."

"But my dear friend, it is. Thanks to your oh-so-generous patience and stupidity, I can hardly feel your attacks. They're about as strong as your doppelganger's."

"Is that so," said Saitama, "Sound's like you're full of shit!"

"It's been fun." Frieza held out his hands and placed his right foot forward, performing the same pose as he did earlier. "You've given me a very bracing workout. Part of me might even shed a tear." Immediately, Frieza's dark energy began to seep out of him like smoke from a fire. Saitama unfolded his arms and took a defensive stance. Saitama's senses were sending him danger signals as Frieza stood there. It was as if Frieza were somehow making himself even stronger. It was enough to make his skin crawl.

"Alright, maybe this won't be so easy..." Suddenly, Frieza dropped his hands to his sides. He stared right into Saitama's eyes; then, as if mocking him, he widened them and let out a little hum of curiosity, as if saying, "Are you ready for this?"

With lightning speed, Frieza appeared in front of Saitama and kicked him in the face. The bald hero yelled out in pain, and he was barely able to keep his footing as he staggered backwards from the blow. He shook his head and looked back up at Frieza; then, Saitama felt a small trace of blood coming out of his nose. "That speed was insane!" thought Saitama, "He shouldn't be that fast!"

Frieza beamed in delight when he saw the shock in Saitama's eyes. How good it felt to see that bald bastard in pain! Now he knew exactly how he felt before when Saitama toyed with him at 70% power. What daunting, unforgivable humiliation that was! Well, as he said before, Frieza intended to pay back Saitama in-full.

"SLIMY LIZARD!" Saitama charged Frieza, but before he could reach him, he just disappeared. He looked to his left and could only stand still as he was hit in his stomach. The bald hero tried to counter, but Frieza had already vanished and attacked him from another spot. "GHHAHHH!" Saitama started to move rapidly throughout the empty space, attempting to use his speed to evade the terrible lizard, but in less than a second, Frieza had already found him and struck his face with his tail. Before he could even open his eyes again, Frieza clamped his hands together and slammed him downward, and just before he made it to the ground, he kneed Saitama in the back, and finally, he hit Saitama with his tail again and put him in the ground.

"TWO-HANDED CONSECUTIVE NORMAL PUNCHES!" Saitama jumped up off the ground and attacked with his two-handed punching technique. But no! Frieza met Saitama's string of punches with his own, and in just seconds, Saitama was overwhelmed in the exchange of blows and became intimate with the ground.

"You really need to come up with better names for your attacks!" Saitama aggressively got back up again and snarled at Frieza. "Stick it up your ass!" shouted Saitama, "You only caught me off guard, that's all!"

"Oh is that so?" Frieza chuckled amusingly at the way in which Saitama responded, "That sounded a little aggravated! Now don't tell me that the most powerful hero on this mudball is getting worried!"

"Of course not!" yelled Saitama "The only thing that I'm worried about is how far up I'm gonna be able to stick my arm your ass!"

"Woah! Alright, alright..." Frieza put out his arms like a policeman would to a criminal to calm them down. "Since I seemed to have hit a soft spot there, and I'm in a generous mood, I'm gonna give you one free shot. But I must warn you, if you waste it-"

"KILLER MOVE, SERIOUS SERIES: SERIOUS PUNCH!" Before Frieza even finished his sentence, Saitama already went ahead and accepted Frieza's proposal. Saitama's Serious Punch made a direct hit on Frieza's right cheek. The shockwaves created from the attack were unbelievable; all of the spectators were knocked off of their feet, and in the sky, the clouds were parted, split in half. Saitama smirked; the power put into that punch should have been able to take care of 10 Friezas. This battle was already over.

"Heh heh heh..." The smirk on Saitama's face shambled when he heard this low-toned chuckle. Saitama observed Frieza's face, and realized there was a small trail of blood running down his mouth, but other than that, he seemed totally unharmed. Frieza wiped the blood off of his face, and with the lowest, darkest, most malevolent tone he'd ever used, said, "You're gonna regret it."

Saitama was stunned speechless. This couldn't be right. Frieza just took his Serious Punch head-on, and it didn't even faze him. At the very least it should have knocked him to the ground, left him disoriented for a few seconds. Before, his serious punch was able to make easy work of Frieza's most powerful attack, and back then he was mostly winging it. But he'd actually been serious when he punched Frieza, and this was all it did? It was completely insane.

The spectating space pirates were awestruck at their master's immense durability, amazed at how much progress Frieza made with this single transformation.

"Lord Frieza's got him on the ropes now!" said Guldo.

"Recoome can't wait to watch the fireworks!" exclaimed Recoome.

"I never had a doubt," stated Captain Ginyu.

"Saitama's practically finished," added Zarbon. Without warning, static from one of the scouters blared. It took a moment for the Space Pirates to realize the noise was coming from Zarbon's scouter.

"-Zar-Zarbon! Are you receiving me?" An unknown voice spoke into the scouter, but from what Zarbon could tell, he was panicked. His breathing was labored, and in the background, they could all hear the yelling of soldiers in the heat of most likely a battle.

"What's going on down there?" said Zarbon, "Is the situation under control?"

"We need assistance! One of the soldiers contacted the rest of us, telling us there was something important for Lord Frieza we needed to help him with. We found ourselves with three inhabitants; we thought we could take them, but they're proving to be too much for us! Zarbon, please come to our coordinates before we're all massacred!"

"Alright, alright! Just send me the coordinates and I'll be on my way!"

"Of course!"

Zarbon let out a perturbed groan. "I swear, these foot soldiers are the worst; they can never handle anything by themselves." Zarbon rotated himself in the direction the coordinates were showing, and he began to increase his energy. "I trust nothing will arise while I'm gone," said Zarbon.

"Not a problem," said Captain Ginyu, "Just make sure you're back in time to see Lord Frieza land the finishing blow."

Zarbon nodded. "Will do." So with that, the handsome space pirate flew off into the sky, leaving the Ginyu's behind to continue watching the battle of the century.

On the battlefield, Saitama was yelling angrily and attacking Frieza with strings of very fast and powerful punches. Despite the increase in ferocity, Frieza was able to dodge and counter all of Saitama's moves with minimal effort.

The lines of worry were etching deeper in the skin of the heroes watching this unfortunate turn of events.

"This is bad, the gap between their strength is widening," said Atomic Samurai.

"Frieza's just toying with him," exclaimed Garou, "He's enraging Saitama, playing with his emotions."

"Not only that," said Bang, interrupting Garou, "But Saitama's movements have become more erratic, more disorganized."

"What are you talking about?" demanded Genos, "Are you questioning my master's abilities?"

Garou somberly nodded, with Bomb following suit. "His technique was already that of a complete amateur; he just had his immense power to make up for it, but now that he's facing an opponent of equal, no greater power, this weakness is coming back to haunt him. He's not even defending himself properly! Look!"

The heroes looked to see what he was talking about, and while observing in detail, they realized Garou was onto something: Saitama was barely defending himself from Frieza, and his movements were very sluggish. He was forgetting to put his elbows up in defense, and his stance was completely wide and unfocused. His face was scrunched in fury, and his teeth were bared with frightening vice. Every time he was hit, his reaction time was delayed, and before he even had the chance to counter, Frieza was already gone and striking him in a different area.

"Damn it Saitama..." Just like the expert martial artists, Nappa could very clearly see what was going on. The Saiyan General felt like he was looking in a mirror: this was exactly what happened to him against Sonic. Saitama was too focused on anger; it was limiting his speed and reaction time, and it was only leaving himself even more open to attack. If he could, he'd try and shout to Saitama to calm him down, but Frieza would probably eradicate him, so the best he could do was watch and hope Saitama would come to his senses.

"Can't you see Genos?" said Flashy Flash, "They're right; Saitama's technique has become sloppy, even sloppier than it already was. He needs to hone his skills and reflexes, or he'll be completely helpless against opponents like this!"

The teenage cyborg prepared an angry retort, but he stopped himself at the last minute. "Could they be right..." though Genos, "Is this the price of a lack of refinement? Could Saitama be this inexperienced in fighting?"

In the sky, a brilliant idea popped in Frieza's demented brain. "Hey Saitama!" shouted Frieza, cupping his hands around his mouth as he did, "Get ready for my favorite game: PAINBALL! ROUND 2!"

Nappa's heart turn to stone. "No..."

"Round 2?" Saitama didn't understand what Frieza meant and didn't have time to understand what it meant; from both of his fingers, Frieza fired a massive barrage of blood-red Death Beams. Unlike before, Frieza was constantly moving, changing his position as to make it more difficult to predict or avoid his attacks. This, combined with his surplus of speed, made it appear that there were multiple copies of Frieza firing from everywhere at once, even though it was just him. This was the new level of power Frieza had reached, and boy-o-boy, did it feel awesome.

The Death Beams ripped through his yellow jumpsuit and pierced his skin, drawing small pricks of blood. Saitama's blood began to boil: he was able to survive a trip to the moon without so much as a scratch, but these tiny little energy beams were able to make him bleed? "Goddamn it!"

Saitama bent his knees and dug his fingers into the air. Frieza knew what this was; it was all-too-familiar.

"Killer Move, Serious Series: Serious Table Flip!" Saitama flipped the ground on the air to stop Frieza's relentless Death Beams, but before the terrain could go even 10 meters up into the air, their movement was instantly halted. The bald hero couldn't understand: he did exactly the same movements as before, but something was keeping them from soaring any higher.

"Yo. Up here." Saitama looked up and gasped: Frieza's left hand was lifted up and there was a faint glow around his hand and the rocks. It didn't take a genius to put two-and-two together.

The esper watching on the sidelines was just as shocked. "How was he able to react so quickly to stop all those rocks? It took me years to attain that level of reflex, and even now I'm not able to stop objects moving that fast in such a short amount of time. This shouldn't be possible!"

"You really just can't respect my property, can you?" Frieza dropped his hand, and all of the terrain fell back to the ground. "Well then let's see how you like it when your shit gets flipped!" Frieza flew down to Saitama and pummeled him with a barrage of speedy punches. Like Saitama's punches, the force of the Space Emperor's punches created major gusts of winds and fractured the ground below them, as broken as it already was. Try as he might, Saitama was just too overwhelmed by Frieza's multitudinous punches. The combo of punches continued until Saitama crashed into a gorge about 2 miles long; the gorge instantly crumbled as Saitama's body cut its way through the large rock formation.

Frieza hovered a few meters above the air, crossing his arms and coldly staring at the ruins below him. Snapping out of the damage he took, Saitama pushed all the rocks out of his way and looked up at Frieza. "This isn't good..." muttered Saitama under his breath. He wasn't sure how much longer things could go on like this.

"You know, as entertaining a punching bag as you make, I find there is no more joy to be found here. So how about this? As a reward for helping me achieve an unprecedented level of strength, I'll finish you with this!" In the palm of Frieza's hand, a bright orange ball of energy burst to life. As the seconds passed, the ball began to grow to the size of a small sun, although this one was twice as large as his first one.

"This is a little taste of the scorching heat you're going to be suffering for the rest of eternity! NOW BURN IN HELL!" Frieza threw his hand down, and the fiery ball descended downward, preparing to vaporize Saitama into dust and forgotten memories.

On the ground, Saitama's willpower was burning intensely in his eyes. There was no way in hell he would ever back down from this!

"YOU THINK I'M AFRAID OF THIS?!" screamed Saitama, "I'VE HANDLED IT ONCE, I CAN HANDLE IT AGAIN! JUST WATCH!" Even in the face of this horrendous scenario, even though he had been beaten to a bloody pulp, even though he'd been toyed with like a child's plaything, he still found joy in this situation. As disgusting as it might be, the rush of the battle was still present. It was still giving him fuel for his strength; it was like a drug addict getting his first hit after a year of abstinence. And like all drug addicts, the rush could kill him. But for a man like Saitama? He'd never let that happen.

The Death Ball was rapidly honing in on its target. 50 meters. 40 meters. 30 meters. 20 meters. 10 meters.

"Bring it on!"

"GRRAAAHHHHH!" The instant Saitama's fist touched the Death Ball, there were powerful side effects. Huge lightning bolts shot out of the Death Ball, carving into the land, melting all the rock it touched and turning it into lava. Within a second of punching the Death Ball, Saitama's red glove was vaporized, not that it was needed.

The struggle was absolutely petrifying: all the veins on Saitama's head were bulging. His muscles were tighter than steel as he poured every ounce of power into holding back the Death Ball. His eyes were somehow both wild and focused, and more serious than they'd ever been before.

But as admirable and impressive as Saitama's indomitable will was, Frieza's Death Ball began to overwhelm the bald hero. "DAMN IT!" screamed Saitama as he felt himself being pushed back. Never before had any opponent challenged him to this degree of intensity. Even with his anger and will fueling him, he was still losing the battle.

"HAHAHAHAH! THAT FEELING OF HELPLESSNESS SHOULD BE SETTLING IN QUITE NICELY!" yelled Frieza, "LET'S SEE HOW LONG IT TAKES BEFORE YOUR BONES ARE VAPORIZED!"

"DAMN... YOU!" screamed Saitama, "I'M... NOT... GIVING... IN!" While he spoke these words with every drop of passion and fury in his heart, his seemingly invulnerable and unstoppable body was still being broken down.

"You're putting up quite the resistance," said Frieza, "BUT IT'S OVER!" Frieza thrust his hand outward, increasing the energy of his Death Ball. In less than a second, Saitama felt the Death Ball growing stronger, expanding in size.

"YYYYYYYAHHHHHHHHHHH!" The Death Ball exploded in a bright flash, disintegrating everything in its path until there was nothing but a heaping pile of ash.

Across the battlefield, Genos gasped in absolute horror, while the other heroes looked on with worry. His master put everything he had into stopping that Death Ball, yet he failed all-the-same. It couldn't be true!

"No, master..."

"Wait!" said Bang, "Look!" The aged martial artist pointed down to the ruins of the battlefield, and beneath the charred ashes of the landscape, a figure popped out. The teenage cyborg let out an immense sigh of relief; thank god his master was alright. Well, "alright" wouldn't be exactly accurate: Saitama's face was covered in dirt and blood. The entire upper part of his jumpsuit from his neck to his waist had been vaporized, leaving his chiseled chest exposed to the world. His right boot had been torn, revealing three of Saitama's toes, and Saitama's left glove was nearly gone, save for the pinky hole and the lower part covering his wrist. His arms were drooping at his sides, and his breathing was very labored.

"That thing really did a number on me..." said Saitama, wincing in pain in the process, "I haven't felt this bad since the first year of training. That Frieza's really got some hot moves." Somehow, Saitama was able to crack a joke despite his serious bruises.

"You're still alive?" Frieza's tail whipped in the air, and his arms were laying at his sides in a neutral manner. He was neither angry nor happy, just surprised. "Your endurance truly is exceptional. Any other opponent would have been utterly obliterated, yet here you are, standing and ready to press on." Frieza's feet lightly touched the ground, and with only a few steps, he was standing in front of Saitama.

Frieza's first action was slugging Saitama across the face, sending him into the ground. Before Saitama could get himself up, Frieza's foot aggressively pushed Saitama's head to the ground, his right cheek scrapping up against the cold rock.

"Ah, you're in your rightful place: beneath me, groveling at my feet. Perhaps now you finally understand what I am: I am your master, your Emperor, and your teacher to the most important lesson of all: never defy me!" Frieza increased the force on his leg, causing Saitama to yell out in agony.

"Oh, what's wrong?" mocked Frieza, "No clever comeback? No hateful insult? Come on, say something! Speak! Your master demands it!"

"You... are not... MY MASTER!"

Frieza hummed out in surprise. Without warning, the bald hero squeezed Frieza's leg and threw him off of him. Saitama jumped up to his feet and punched Frieza with lightning fast punches, pouring his heart out and giving everything he had in every punch. Frieza was caught off guard by the increased speed and strength, and was helplessly beaten like a punching bag.

GRAH!" Saitama stopped his flurry of punches and struck Frieza with one, very hard punch. The force of this single punch created multiple shockwaves and sent Frieza through at least 10 layers of rock.

"IT'S TIME I FINISHED WHAT I STARTED, FRIEZA!" Saitama bent down and, being careful not to go out of Earth's atmosphere, jumped several hundred meters into the sky.

"What is Saitama doing," said King.

"I think he's going to finish it with one final attack," replied Garou. "It's his last-ditch effort to end this battle." All the spectators turned their attention to the Hero Hunter. "He's realized the dangerous strength Frieza possesses, and knows if he doesn't end it now, Frieza will reign victorious, so he's channeling all his energy into one single punch."

"Is that right?" said Superalloy Darkshine. The muscular hero looked to the skies, and shouted up to the bald hero, " You can do it, champ! Finish that wimpy lizard off with your godly muscles!"

"Yea!" Metal Bat followed Superalloy Darkshine's lead and yelled out to Saitama. "Send that creep packing!"

"End that wretched lizard's life!" screamed Genos, cupping his hands to increase the range of his shout. "It is your destiny! I know it is!"

Up in the sky, Saitama couldn't help but feel somewhat touched by his disciples words. Even after he screwed the pooch and let Frieza finish his final transformation, he still cheered him on. He still had faith that he was the best and strongest hero in existence. It made him feel a little fuzzy.

"This one's for you, Genos." Saitama's speed decreased until he was stationary, leaving him floating in the air, like a cloud in the bright blue sky.

"Gotta increase my speed," said Saitama, so what he did was turn the opposite direction, and clapped. The simple clap sent him flying downward at dozens of meters per second, and it only increased as gravity took its toll.

"GET READY FOR EVERYTHING I'VE GOT!" screamed Saitama.

On the ground, Frieza had just gotten up and dusted himself off. He looked around, and realized Saitama had vanished. He was just about to ask himself where he went, when he heard Saitama's shouting. Frieza looked up and saw Saitama skyrocketing downward straight toward him.

"So he's finally coming at me with everything. Well in that case..." Frieza's dark aura erupted in a brilliant burst around him, his muscles swelling as the power coursed through him. "I'LL MEET IT HEAD-ON! I HOPE YOU'LL MAKE IT ENTERTAINING!" Frieza flew up to meet Saitama. This was it. The ultimate battle between the two most powerful warriors on the planet, perhaps the universe, was about to reach its thrilling climax. Both warriors were on fire, their willpower's burning like suns. Only this would determine whose sun would glow brighter. When the two warriors finally met each other in the sky, both fighters screamed simultaneously, "

"KILLER MOVE, KILLER SERIES: ULTIMATE PLANET-BUSTING FULL-FORCE PUNCH!"

"SUPREME EMPEROR NOVA STRIKE!"

The two moves clashed together in an electrifying, petrifying, absolutely glorious fashion. Upon contact, all the rock formations below them shattered, and the ledge upon which the heroes were standing fell apart, causing the heroes to be buried in rocks. Dozens of lightning bolts shot out, scorching the barren land, and the shockwaves were fanning out halfway across the globe. The dark aura around Frieza grew brighter, while Saitama's face only grew more angry and intense.

"YYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH!" The pair of fighters screamed as loud as they humanely could, and then, the sky lit up in a magnificent flash. The shockwaves created tremors so powerful, the very Earth was shaking in fear. On the opposite side of the globe, humans were knocked off their feet, small buildings toppled, and wild animals whimpered, panicking at what they were sensing.

It took about 10 seconds for the quaking to die down and the planet to stabilize. At the epicenter of the quaking, there was nothing but ruin. The once lush and vibrant landscape was all but decimated, replaced by rock, ash and sorrow. The heroes were slow to get up, with the force of the explosion knocking their senses loose.

"Is everyone alright?" said Puri-Puri-Prisoner through stifled groans.

"I guess..." said Metal Bat.

"I'll be alright when I see that ugly lizard's lifeless corpse," said Sweet Mask.

"Wait," said Genos, his eyes widening in fear. "Where is Master Saitama?"

The spectators surveyed the land around them, yet were unable to see anything clearly due to the thick smoke from the explosion. Pray that Saitama was alright!

"I see something!" shouted Garou, pointing to the target. Everyone looked, and saw a humanoid figure with no hair walking towards them.

"Could it be..." The smoke gradually cleared, revealing a battered, limping, yet still moving Saitama. The cyborg's face lit up in happiness and relief. It was as if the weight and shame of losing to Frieza had been lifted off of him. His master did it! He had slain the God-level monster, just as he said he would. Likewise, the other heroes breathed sighs of relief, overjoyed to know that this fight was over.

Nappa let out a hearty laugh, the first genuine laugh he'd done in years. Saitama had succeeded where he had failed. While he still would have wanted to deal the final blow himself, at least he knew Frieza was on his long, slow journey to hell. At last, his people were avenged, and King Vegeta could finally rest in peace.

As he was walking, Saitama lifted his arms in triumph and stopped in his place to bask in the glory of his victory. The heroes applauded him, walking towards him with smiles on all their faces to congratulate him, when...

"No..." Just when they thought there'd be no more surprises, Saitama abruptly dropped his arms. His knees lost all their power, his mind blacking out as he fell to the ground, revealing Frieza standing right behind him, smiling in pure ecstasy.

"No no no no no no no no..." Genos couldn't accept what he was seeing. It just wasn't possible: it had to be some sort of illusion cast by Frieza. Ever since he'd become Saitama's disciple, he'd come to understand that there were no beings stronger than Saitama. His master was the ultimate symbol of strength and hope that made all monsters cower in terror, the representation of everything Genos aspired to be. There was no one stronger than Saitama. There COULD'NT be someone stronger than Saitama. If his master was truly defeated, then all was lost.

"Saitama, you can't be defeated," said King, who was in a trance just as Genos and frankly the rest of the heroes were. This trance prevented them from hearing the uproarious Ginyu members cheering in delight as they watched Saitama's body fall to the ground and their master stand victorious.

"The looks on your faces..." said Frieza, bathing in the steaming bath of his victory, "it is truly a sight to behold. But what did you expect? I told you all you would experience a nightmare beyond the horrors of hell. Since your knight in shining armor has moved on to the next world..." Frieza lifted his finger, causing all the heroes to jump back in fear.

"I suppose you'll have to tell him what he missed."

The teenage cyborg was not ready to give up, however. Using his quick thinking, he rushed Frieza to distract him with a new move Dr. Kuseno has given him.

"Lightning Core!"

From his core, Genos produced a blinding flash of light to incapacitate Frieza. The Space Emperor yelled out in pain and grabbed at his eyes. Using the previous time he had, Genos scooped up Saitama and yelled to the others, "We have to run! Now!"

King grabbed Superalloy Darkshine's shoulder. "Could you-" King didn't even finish his sentence before the black hero grabbed King and sling him around his shoulders.

"I've got Blast!" Not having forgotten about the top-ranked hero in the Hero Association, Tatsumaki levitated Blast off of the ground and flew into the air with his unconscious body trailing a crew feet behind her. The rest of the heroes sprinted as fast as they possibly could, which wasn't very fast. Garou, the Hero Hunter, honestly had no idea what to do, and acting before he thought, decided to run up alongside the heroes.

The Saiyan General panicked. He stood no chance against Frieza with Saitama out of commission. But where could he go? "I guess I'll head back to meet up with the speedy prick." Nappa powered up and soared into the sky

"Stop!" screamed Captain Ginyu, "You're not going-" Ginyu was interrupted by an incineration blast that captured him, as well as Recoome and Guldo, in its flames.

"Wretched, insignificant..." Frieza muttered vehemently as he waited for the effects of the flash to wear off. It took about 15 seconds before his sight returned to normal. As soon as it did, he flew up inti the sky to find out where the heroes went. "Ah-hah!" Frieza spotted them running toward the populated city, although their pace was sluggish due to their previous injuries.

Frieza cackled. "Fools..." Frieza held his finger out and prepared a Death Beam.

"No one shall escape my wrath."

* * *

 **"Wha-wh-wh-wh-What? Saitama... lost? But he can't lose! He's not supposed to lose! He's One Punch Man! What kind of idiot are you, dick?!"**

 **I can only imagine the faces of people reading the end of this chapter. This is most likely the reaction going through most of your minds, and I'm definitely going to get like 10-15 very long reviews talking about Saitama and what a f-ing idiot I am. For those who are saying, "Meh-meh-meh-meh He has infinite power Meh-meh-meh-meh he's a joke character, he's not supposed to be taken seriously!" Well you know what? The joke is getting old, and it's time for a new act.**

 **I'm also probably gonna get backlash over the reason of Frieza's massive power-up, but I think given everything we've seen in the OPM universe and all of the crazy transformations people have undergone, this would make sense. And let me clear this up: Saitama doesn't have infinite power. There's no way to suppress infinity, and if he did have infinite power, he would have killed every enemy in a single punch. I will admit, I don't know Saitama's exact power. For all we know, he could be at the level of Goku in the Saiyan saga, or he could rival the gods of destruction, but to make things more interesting, this is where I'm putting Saitama. DEAL WITH IT!**

 **And lets face it: Saitama has had almost no character development whatsoever. He's helped other characters develop, but he himself hasn't had any epiphany of any kind. The only notable advancement is his concern for Genos, as seen when he was worried over his possible death in the Deep Sea King arc, but he completely rejected Suiryu, not taking into account all the good he has done for Genos and mainly worried about the hassle of having another disciple. Some might argue he has enough on his plate or something, but if he had truly developed, I think he would have accepted Suiryu as a disciple. He didn't even break it nicely, he just said "Absolutely not."**

 **Also, I feel that the only person who should have the honor of taking down the protagonist of One Punch Man should be arguably the main villain of DBZ and the most popular villain. Well, to me at least and probably a great deal of dbz fans. Besides, this just makes you wonder what's going to happen next to the heroes and Nappa, and what the future of Earth might be. It opens up whole new possibilities, whereas Saitama winning would have a lot less room to grow and develop the characters. Well, be sure to stay tuned for Chapter 27 of the Space Emperor's Besiege!**


	27. An Agonizing Choice

**Whoa! After a week, there's already another update? It's crazy! Well what can I say? I was on a roll and managed to finish this chapter in a few days, so hopefully it's like a good gift for those of you who thought you'd have to wait a month or two. So ENJOY!"**

* * *

"No one shall escape my wrath."

"Lord Frieza!" The sound of Captain Ginyu's voice cut off Frieza's attack. Frieza moaned in apoplectic annoyance and shouted back to Ginyu, "What is it? I'm in the middle of something!"

Captain Ginyu nervously tensed for a moment, but quickly mustered up the courage to tell Frieza the important discovery. "I've just received an urgent message from Zarbon! He says one of the footsoldiers may have found someone who could grant you immortality!"

Frieza's eyes became as wide as saucers, and the other fighters were instantly forgotten. Frieza flew down and grasped Ginyu by his shoulders. "Tell me where they are!"

Captain Ginyu looked off at the escaping heroes and then back at Frieza. "But sir, don't you want to finish off the hero-"

Frieza angrily shook his head. "They've already lost! And besides, I've far surpassed any measly power they currently possess. They no longer pose any sort of threat! Besides, you and your men can track them with your scouters." Frieza's grasp on the captain's shoulders tightened, and he frantically shouted, "Now give me the coordinates!"

"Of course. Here." Captain Ginyu scrambled to remove his scouter and quickly gave it to Frieza. "I've locked in the coordinates onto the scouter. They're a few thousand miles away from our current location, so the trip should take about half an hour, maybe mo-"

Frieza's ki sparked to life around him, and he skyrocketed off to the location of the coordinates before Captain Ginyu could finish.

Frieza's excitement burst forth, and his glee was more present than ever before. It was as if fate had extended its hand out and given him these amazing gifts one after another. "I can't believe it!" Frieza was more hopped up than a kid on Easter candy. "Imagine my luck! First I get this amazing power and completely break Saitama, and out of the blues, my wildest dreams could possibly come to fruition! Whatever God is on my side, I am grateful for your support! At last, the mighty Frieza shall be blessed with immortality!"

* * *

Dozens of footsoldiers were broken, moaning and groaning in agony. The damage they'd taken had been severe, and some of them had even been killed. Only a few managed to remain unscathed, and they were all anxiously awaiting the arrival of their master, who was due to arrive shortly.

Zarbon was among the unharmed soldiers, and he was standing victorious over his opponent: Zombieman. His enemy-turned-ally, Armored Gorilla, has a massive hole in his chest and was lying defeated on the wall, right beside the good Dr. Genus, who was unharmed.

"Look! Up there!" One of the footsoldiers pointed to the sky, taking note of a dark figure coming into view. The figure came it at amazing speeds, and in less than a few seconds, he went from a dot in the sky to standing right in front of them. But... this didn't look like Lord Frieza. The soldiers looked at each other, uncertain of who this stranger was.

"You fools!" shouted Zarbon, "This is Lord Frieza!" The soldiers all felt there hearts jump up to their mouths; in less than a second, they straightened themselves and bowed down to their master.

"Our deepest apologies! We just didn't recognize you with your... bulkier appearance."

"Understandable." Frieza walked past his soldiers and towards Zarbon, who was also bowing to his master.

"I was wondering where you were," said Frieza.

"I apologize for leaving so abruptly, but there was an urgent call, and I didn't want to interrupt your battle," replied Zarbon, being sure to be as polite and humble as possible.

"So what exactly happened here?"

"Well..."

* * *

 _Zarbon soared through the air to answer the distress call. As he passed the populated cities, he noticed there were monsters destroying the cities and attacking citizens. There were some heroes fighting the monsters, but most of them were one-sided._

 _"It appears these Earthlings really have their hands full..." Zarbons scouter beeped, telling him his destination was in 3 miles._

 _"Now where are they..." Zarbon surveyed the land below him, when he spotted a large fight breaking out. He squinted, and realized many of the fighters had Frieza Force armor. "That has to be it!" Zarbon's ki glared to life, and within seconds, he landed at the site of conflict._

 _"Oh my..." This was all Zarbon could say as he watched what was happening: more than half of the soldiers were trying to fend off a giant armored machine and failing miserably, and a smaller group was in combat with a man. The man had black hair, pale skin, and a katana in his hand._

 _"Zarbon!"_

 _One of the soldiers came sprinting to his side. He was clutching his left arm, and his right eye was badly bruised. "Thank god you're here!"_

 _"What's going on?"_

 _"Were being hammered! That robot ape has barely let up, and half of our forces have been knocked out! He has to have a power level of at least 15,000! And the other one has regenerative abilities that allow him to recover from any attacks we lay on him!"_

 _"I see..." Zarbon pushed the soldier aside and began walking into the battle. "I can handle this, no problem. But just to be on the safe side..." Zarbon bulked up and transformed into his powered up state. If he learned anything from watching these last several battles, it's that the inhabitants of Earth were full of surprises._

 _Zarbon dashed up to Armored Gorilla, taking him by surprise and landing a point-blank energy attack. The might cyborg staggered, but quickly recovered and looked up at the one who had attacked him. He then lifted his right arm and swung his right arm; but shockingly, Zarbon catched it with almost no effort, eliciting a gasp from the gorilla._

 _"Heh..." Zarbon went on the offensive and landed several punches, their speed being much faster than what Armored Gorilla could track. Zarbon then performed a front kick that struck Armored Gorilla's chin, causing him to fly up into the air. But just before he landed on the ground, Zarbon went beneath him and caught him._

 _"How weak..." Zarbon tossed Armored Gorilla and slammed him into the wall. Then, for the final touch, he extended his palm and fired his Elegant Blaster. The orange energy beam pierced right through the gorilla's armor and went out the other side, destroying the building behind him in the process. Zarbon grinned. "One down, one to go..."_

 _Zombieman's katana was drenched in blood as he sliced and hacked through the Frieza Force soldiers. He was confident the battle would be over in about 30 seconds, but he hadn't counted on a huge, monstrous beat coming in and punching him in the stomach. The undead hero yelled, some saliva pouring out of his mouth as he did._

 _"What? Who the hell are you?" said Zombieman, "Where did you come from?"_

 _"I'm one of the elite henchmen of Lord Frieza," replied Zarbon, "I received word the footsoldiers we're having a tough time against you and your friend, so I decided to care of it myself!" Zarbon grabbed Zombieman's face and fired an energy beam, scorching his face. The hero staggered back and revealed his charred black face. Yet it began to change: in seconds, the dead skin was regenerating, replacing the dead skin cells with new skin cells._

 _"My my, it appears your regenerative abilities weren't a lie after all," said Zarbon, "But it will take more than regeneration if you have any hope of defeating me."_

 _Zombieman's eyes hardened, and he sliced Zarbon with his katana. But the monster caught it with only two fingers. "What?" Zombieman swirled his sword and attempted to strike Zarbon multiple times, but every single time. Zarbon intercepted the sword like it was just a plastic stick._

 _"How weak!" Zarbon snapped the katana in half and threw the piece he had in his hand at Zombieman's head; his head was split down the middle, and the piece Zarbon threw was lodged deep into the ground. "Your physical abilities are adequate at best! But you're not dealing with an adequate fighter!" Zarbon fired a volley of energy blasts, which left deep wounds in Zombieman's skin and left smoke rising in the places they landed. Zarbon flew forward and ruthlessly best Zombieman with nothing but pure killing intent. Zombieman's regeneration was unfortunately too slow to heal all the damage Zarbon was dealing, so he could do nothing while Zarbon pulverized him. "HHAAAHHH!" Zarbon barreled his fist through Zombieman's chest; the undead hero gasped when he felt Zarbons hand go straight through him. Zarbon took his hand out and fired his Elegant Blaster straight through the wound hole._

 _"AAAAHHHHH!" Zombieman fell to the ground broken, bruised and defenseless. Zarbon slowly walked until he was directly above him and stomped hard on his chest wound, causing the hero to yell in pain. "Let's see how long it takes you to regenerate from this!" Zarbon took hold of Zombieman's right arm and with a mighty pull, he tore Zombieman's arm clean off. The hero screamed, while the villain laughed._

 _Suddenly, the door of a building flew open, and two Frieza soldiers were holding a man with long black hair and a white sweatshirt hostage._

 _"Who is this?" said Zarbon, who had reverted back to his regular state._

 _"This is the man who is going to make Lord Frieza immortal."_

* * *

"So after that, I contacted Captain Ginyu to tell you about the news while we kept watch over these three. So far they haven't said a word."

"I see. And who exactly made this discovery?"

"We did." Two Frieza soldiers who were watching over Dr. Genus and Armored Gorilla spoke up.

"And who exactly are you?"

The soldier with the purple skin spoke first. "My name is Karmath, and this is my partner Orlen. We were trailing that man," Karmath pointed to Zombieman, "Because he was acting very oddly. It was then we found out he was a test subject made by a mad scientist in an attempt to create an immortal being. He is the scientist." Karmath pointed to the man with black hair and the glasses.

"Interesting..." Frieza walked up to this man and bent his knees down. "I'm sorry for all the trouble my men have caused you," said Frieza, flashing a smile and acting very polite. "I must inquire: who are you exactly?"

"Don't tell him anything!" screamed Zombieman. Frieza scowled and turned to Zombieman, firing a Death Beam that blasted his mouth and most of his nose clean off his face.

"As I was saying..." Frieza turned back to Dr. Genus. "Who are you? What is your name?"

The good doctor nervously gulped. "My name is Dr. Genus," he said, "I am the creator of the House of Evolution, a disbanded organization dedicated to humanity's evolution. Subject 66 was my first success of the immortality project."

"How advanced are his regenerative abilities?"

"I've seen them firsthand," interjected Zarbon, "They are advanced, but they aren't instantaneous. For instance, I tore his arm off, and it took 15 minutes for it to grow back."

Frieza took this information in with burgeoning interest. While Frieza did indeed have a certain extent of regenerative abilities and extended longevity, his regeneration was very limited and would only be effective when he transformed. "A little on the slow side, but still not terrible. Now, Dr. Genus." Frieza's face turned back to Dr. Genus, and he gave him another very warm-hearted smile.

"Yes?"

"Would it perhaps be possible to make me immortal?"

"What?"

"Theoretically speaking, could it be done?"

"I'm not sure. I was able to restore my youth by altering my genetic code, but I don't think I can manipulate your DNA to make you immortal. I don't believe it can be done"

"Can't you at least try?"

This didn't sit right with Dr. Genus. He heard of what Subject 66 had said about the threat to humanity, and given the evidence before him, he was pretty sure this Frieza character was the impending threat to humanity. Not only that, he could see Frieza's desperation for immortality. He attempted to hide it through his charming charisma and kind words, but Dr. Genus could see right through it, the voracious lust this lizard had for the prospect of eternal life. He was quite sure this character would stomp on the lives of millions of lives and eradicates countless civilizations to get what he wanted, and after everything he'd learned and his personal evolution, he refused to stoop to assisting this monster.

"No." Upon hearing Dr. Genus' fierce rejection, Frieza's smile instantly faltered, and his hands tightened into fists.

"Is that so..." The tone in which he spoke was soft and measured, but it wouldn't be for long. Frieza grabbed Dr. Genus by the neck with his and began choking him. The doctor frantically tried to break free, but it was pointless.

Frieza stared into the eyes of the mad scientist to see the fear building up. "You're on the clock; this is the softest grip I can use, and already your face is turning red. I'd say you only have a few seconds before your neck snaps." The lizard's patience finally crossed its limit, and he furiously shouted, "Now comply or die!"

The good doctor ferociously stared at Frieza, suddenly filled with the determination not to concede. So with the last of his strength, he showed Frieza his middle finger and mouthed the words, "I choose to die."

Frieza snapped. "Wretched, insignificant-"

"Stop." A voice rang inside of Frieza's head, stopping him before he could make any reckless actions. "No need to break this man's neck," said the voice, "I believe I may be of assistance."

"Who is this?" Frieza thought these words, assuming they would reach out to whatever was contacting him. In an instant, the Space Emperor's entire body jerked up, and his eyes bulged. Frieza felt his spirit being transported out of his body, like he was flying out into the cosmos. For a moment, everything was black. Then, the setting began to change. In a few seconds, a landscape began to form all around him. In all directions stretched a field of yellow daises as far as the eye could see, with beautiful golden petals decorated on each and every one of them. Up above him was a blood red sky that gave the setting a tone of eeriness, as if some sort of terrible apocalypse was just seconds away from destroying this entire valley.

As he continued to observe the landscape around him, he stopped dead in his tracks. Standing in front of him was a massive creature. Its entire body was covered with a layer of bones and flesh, making it appear as if it was pulled inside out. Even his very face was just a blank slate, devoid of any life.

"Greetings, Frieza." The creature's voice was like a piercing blade, something that would unnerve beings of weak minds, but for Frieza, it was but a casual tone.

"Who might you be?" inquired Frieza, "And why have you brought me here?"

"I am a watcher, surveying your dimension and observing all of the events taking place. I've been watching you ever since you arrived on Earth, and I must say, you have exceeded my expectations. Through sheer willpower and your innate strength, you've managed to attain tremendous power far surpassing anything any mortal has attained thus far."

"I'm aware," replied Frieza.

"I've been waiting until the opportune moment to speak to you in person, so once you defeated Saitama and made your way to Dr. Genus, I thought the time was right to offer up my services."

"Why would you possibly want to help me?"

The bony creature put his hands behind his back and craned his head down to Frieza. "I was a former inhabitant of Planet Earth, banished by the human race to this parallel dimension to spend eternity in isolation. Since that day, I've attempted to exterminate the human race and save this planet from their terrible actions by using the primordial magic in this dimension, but have found little success."

"Why not? Spare for a few acceptably strong insects here and there, it can't be that much of a hassle."

"As you've already witnessed, that infuriating man Saitama possesses unbelievable power that I am unable to surpass. I thought my hopes of destroying him had all but vanished, but then you came along! Your newly acquired strength has already made easy work of him, and now that he is out of the way, there is nothing left standing in the way of this planet's salvation."

"I see, I see..." Frieza found little relevance nor care in this creature's sob story, and decided to change the subject to something that would actually benefit him. "You mentioned before that you could assist me."

"Yes; I have the ability of mind incursion, and can bend the minds of men to my will."

"So you're saying you could control that scidntist to work for me."

"Indeed I could."

Frieza broke into a fit of joy. "Outstanding!"

"However..." The sudden change of tone in the creature's voice caused Frieza's joy to quickly diminish, and the Space Emperor put on a more serious face. "I expect something in return."

"And that is?"

"In exchange for my cooperation, you shall not consume any resources of this planet and you shall not destroy any more of this planet's bountiful lands. The planet has already lost enough."

The Space Emperor was displeased at this creature's demanding tone. Someone like himself so high up in the universe's pecking order would not be talked down to or forced into compliance. "Have you any inkling in that head of yours who you're speaking to? The Emperor of the Universe will not be bargained with! I will do as I please, and if you have a problem with that." Frieza lifted his hand up and prepared an orange energy ball to fire at the creature. However, the creature did not seem alarmed at Frieza's threats. "Your attacks cannot harm me in this dimension. In here, I am invulnerable!" Frieza snarled and fired the energy ball, but the attack went right through the creature's body.

"You should be warned: I am not one to be trifled with. You have already seen the power of one of my subordinates: Homeless Emperor." Frieza recalled the warrior who went by that name, and from what he remembered, his power level was above his own elite force and most of the members of the Ginyu Force. The creature went on. "And that was just a fraction of what I'm truly capable of. If I so wished, I could warp your mind, toy with it until your sanity is hanging on a thread!" The creature had no intention of telling Frieza that after his massive power-up, he had become immune to any of his spells or mind incursions. No, this little secret helped him maintain the edge in this arrangement.

Frieza's face softened slightly as he pondered his words. It this creature was as powerful as he claimed, and he indeed had the power to unhinge his mind, then it would be foolish to test him. Besides, what he was demanding wasn't such a hindrance to any of his plans; the plentiful warriors on this planet gave him enough benefits, and he had ample resources from other planets, so it wasn't like he was desperate for supplies.

Frieza sighed in exasperation, pinching the bridge of his nose as he sighed, and said, "Very well. I'll adhere to your conditions, but if you fail to make good on your promise, I will do as I please with this mudball planet."

"Very well. You may do what you please with the human cities. If anything, I encourage you to level them off the place of the planet. Now then..." The bony creature unfolded his arms from behind him and snapped his fingers. "Dr. Genus is now under your control. Now return and finish wiping the scum off of this planet." As soon as he finished his sentence, Frieza felt his conscious being ripped out of the creature's world and warped back into his reality. His eyes adjusted back to his reality. All around him, his soldiers were surrounding him, looking in concern. Frieza didn't understand why this was, but then he realized he was lying on the ground.

"My Lord!" Zarbon hovered over his master in dear concern. "Are you alright?"

"Calm yourself, Zarbon." Frieza placed his palms on the ground and briskly pushed himself up off of the ground. His soldiers immediately backed away to give their master space. "I'm fine. How long was I on the ground?"

"About half a minute," replied one of the Frieza soldiers. "What happened?"

"I had a... close encounter." The Frieza Force soldiers didn't understand what their master meant, but they figured further prying wouldn't do them any good, so they kept their mouths shut.

"Lord Frieza!" Karmath alerted his master. "Something's happening to the scientist!" Everyone looked to see what Karmath meant, and they saw the scientist's body rapidly jerking, his arms and legs flailing about and his head shaking like a leaf in the wind. "Interesting..." Frieza walked over to Dr. Genus, and when he approached his body, the scientist's jerkish movements finally began to slow down, until he was lying down with his stomach flat on the ground. The Space Emperor's lips formed a small smile. "Now then..." Frieza lifted Dr. Genus' chin off of the ground so they were staring eye-to-eye. The doctor's eyes fluttered open, but when he opened them, there was a faint red outline around his pupils. With a soft, gentle voice, Frieza said, "Now, allow me to ask you again: Will you assist me in my quest for immortality?"

Instead of thoroughly rejecting him as he did just a few minutes ago, the doctor's face lit up like a fluorescent bulb and with a fervent passion, replied, "Nothing would give me greater honor, my lord!" The Space Emperor chuckled in amused delight. "Excellent."

Zombieman, who was still regenerating his mouth and nose, felt a cold fist wrap around his heart. What just happened? A minute ago, Dr. Genus had outright refused, but now, he was willing to die for this slimy reptile. What happened in the span of a minute to completely change Dr. Genus like this? Did Frieza have some sort of telepathic ability he kept concealed? It didn't make any sense!

Dr. Genus continued. "I'll need to get some raw materials to begin the research," he said, "As well as some machinery from my old laboratory."

"Whatever you need, my men will get for you!"

"GGGRRAAHHHH!" The undead hero's vocal cords and most of his mouth had finally regenerated, allowing him to let out an unintelligible garble. "What were you saying," mocked Frieza. The Space Emperor trotted over to Zombieman's side and bent down right next to his face. "I'm sorry, I don't speak imbecile."

"YYY-llll Hhhhhfffffffffffffffeeeeee ttttttuuuuuuuuu..."

"Say again?"

Zombieman finally managed to let out a complete sentence. "I said, you'll have to deal with them first." Zombieman pointed behind Frieza. The lizard didn't even have time to turn his head before he felt a metallic fist slam him in the face.

The corners of the undead hero's lips curved upward ever-so-slightly. "Thank god these fools didn't search me," thought Zombieman, "Or else they would have found the emergency transmitter hidden inside my trench-coat calling the remaining S-class heroes to my location. Hopefully they can at least land some scratches on him."

Zarbon's face twisted in shock. "LORD FRIEZA!" Zarbon fired an Elegant Blaster through Zombieman's chest before flying to his master's side. However, this concern was unneeded, as Frieza shook off the attack like it was nothing, because to him, it wasn't. "Now who in the..."

Standing in the center of the street was another machine. The machine had long black hair and wore a white mask. His mask had a single horizontal slit for the eyes, and a single red shining eye in the center of the slit. The mask also had three small vertical slits where his mouth should have been. His armor had a rather simplistic design, being similar to a medieval black knights' armor. And apparently, he had some friends; standing on his sides were two other very odd looking individuals. The one on the right was a large, obese man, and when he meant obese, he meant the size of a freaking elephant, with several layers of fat to prove his testament. He had short brown hair, big lips and wore a long-sleeved green shirt. But the one on the left was even more bizarre than the fat one: this one was a young-looking man with a blank and uninterested look on his face, and for god-knows-what reason, was dressed in a full-body dog suit with a red collar, with his face showing where the dog's mouth should be.

"Alright you two," said the man dressed like a dog, "Let's try and make this quick. I'm not comfortable leaving my town unprotected."

"Well unfortunately," replied the machine, "Our entire planet is unprotected, so your city should be the least of your concerns at the moment." The dog man sighed and grudgingly conceded to the machine's words.

"Did you three just come from Comic-con or something?" said Frieza, "Because what kind of normal people actually dress like that? Good god!"

The machine spoke for the other two. "So you're the God-level threat we've been preparing for?" As expected of a machine, his voice was cold and mechanical, devoid of any emotion or life.

"I've been getting that quite a lot since I got here. Yes, that would be me, Lord Frieza, and this is my elite henchman Zarbon." Frieza motioned to Zarbon.

All day, he'd had to deal with new people popping in and out, and quite frankly, it was becoming very vexing for him. After these three, he was done meeting new people for the rest of the day. Frieza pinched thee bridge of his nose for a few seconds, then asked the signature question, "So who are you three exactly?"

"We're professional heroes-"

"S-class?" The three heroes quizzically looked at the lizard.

"Ummmmmm... Yes?" said the machine, "How did you-"

"I've fought and decimated your friends just a few hours ago, so I'm familiar with this run-around. Now NAMES NAMES! Come on, let's do some quality sharing!"

The fatty was the one to speak next. "What did you do to-"

"I SAID NAMES!"

The machine spoke, "I'm Drive Knight. This is Pig God and this is Watchdog Man."

"Wow, those names are actually quite fitting for heroes as bizarre as you three."

Pig God interrupted Frieza and shouted out with concern, "What did you do to the other S-class heroes?!"

"Whoa whoa!" Frieza waved his hands out to relax the fat hero. "Just cool it; you don't need your blood pressure going up. You have enough problems already. Your little friends are fine... for now, but if I were you, I'd be more worried about how you're going to get out of this situation alive.

"Zarbon, go back with the other soldiers. I can handle these three by myself. Oh, and-" Frieza removed the scouter from his eye and handed it to Zarbon, "Hold onto that for now if you would."

Zarbon respectfully bowed to his master. "As you wish." The elite soldier flew to meet up with the rest of the soldiers, leaving the 4 warriors to themselves.

Pig God's fury began to bubble up If what Frieza said was true and all the other S-class heroes were actually defeated, then that meant they were Earth's final defense. The fate of the world was resting solely on their shoulders, and boy did it feel heavy. Pig God took a deep breath.

"Well, here we go." Drive Knight formed a box-shaped object from his body so that it was at his right-hand side. "Tactical Transformation: Centaur-Silver Combo." The box released small jolts of electricity as it changed its form to suit Drive Knight's needs. The box began to envelop around Drive Knight, its energy and components surrounding his legs. It was as if the box was fusing with Drive Knight, changing his form by transforming his lower body into that of a mechanical horse's. His right arm was replaced with an electricity-imbued sword. His right shoulder now had two spiky protrusions and a cable connecting to his sword, presumably to give it the constant flow of electricity.

Watchdog Man was the first of the three to attack, sprinting toward Frieza on all fours like the canine he acted like, annd struck him with his paw. Frieza effortlessly caught his paw with his hand, breaking the stoic hero's deadpan expression for the first time in a while. Drive Knight followed Watchdog Man's lead and galloped toward Frieza, his electric sword primed for the blood of the slimy lizard. Drive Knight swung his sword and attempted to slice Frieza in several pieces, but Frieza masterfully evaded all of his strikes with almost nonexistent effort.

"This is just sad." Frieza released but a small burst of energy, and the two S-class warriors were sent hurtling back into buildings, destroying them upon contact and burying them under concrete and glass.

"Whoa!" This surprised statement came out of Frieza when he realized how quickly Pig God had appeared in front of him. It seemed all the massive weight didn't stop him from keeping his speed up. Pig God's mouth opened up wide, and he took a giant chomp in an attempt to eat Frieza up, but Frieza caught both ends of Pig God's mouth with his hands, leaving but inches between his head and Pig God's hideous mouth.

"There's only one way people kill pigs," said Frieza, "They send them to the butcher, and thankfully, I'm still open for business." Frieza pounded Pig God with a love tap, and just that simple tap was enough to make Pig God scream in pain, for not even his several thick layers of fat could protect him from the unbelievable force in Frieza's weakest punches. Pig God's entire body jiggled like ripples in water.

The pile of rubble above Watchdog Man burst forth in all directions, and beneath it was a very angry man-dog. He venomously snarled and pounced at Frieza, slapping him with his right paw, but Frieza nonchalantly dodged it. The hero's paw hit the ground, creating a crater about 10 meters in length and 3 meters in depth.

"Well you know what they say," said Frieza, "Your bark is worse than your bite!" Watchdog Man's hands curled up into fists, although with his suit, the paw didn't move. Watchdog Man pounced on him again and attacked Frieza with a barrage of paw swipes and punches, but all of them were simply hitting air.

"This is just precious," exclaimed Frieza. The Space Emperor lightly whipped his tail, and Watchdog Man was sent hurtling down into the Earth, until he was almost one dozen meters underground. Drive Knight was the next to shake off the damage, and he drew his sword. Galloping with his 4 feet, he swung his sword in an attempt to cleave his head off his body, but with only two fingers and a tiny bit of effort, the Space Emperor pinched the sword and with a tiny squeeze, completely shattered it.

"I'm actually having fun!" Frieza swept Drive Knight's feet from under him and blasted him away with an invisible kiai. The odds were looking abysmal for the S-class heroes. Watchdog Man was crawling out of the hole, and already his suit was torn to shreds, showing parts of the skin hidden behind his suit. Pig God was clutching at his stomach, the pain from Frieza's punch still stinging badly, and Drive Knight's right arm was completely torn off his body, leaving unhooked wires and short sparks of electricity coming out of the socket.

"Less than a minute in, and look at us!" said Pig God

"No monster in Q-City has ever been this tough," exclaimed Watchdog Man

"What are we going to do?"

"It looks like we're going to have to use the emergency back-up plan." Watchdog Man and Pig God looked at Drive Knight to see if he was being serious, and unfortunately, he was.

"But Drive Knight," said Pig God, "Do you realize what that will entail?"

"I'm aware," said Drive Knight.

"Are you sure there isn't another way?"

Drive Knight somberly shook his head. It was time. "Do you remember the plan?" whispered Drive Knight. He asked the same question to Watchdog Man, and he gave the same response. "Are you both willing to accept the sacrifice we're about to make?" said Drive Knight. The two heroes firmly nodded, confirming their undisputed agreement.

"Alright. Watchdog Man, you know the drill."

"Oh, what's going on? We planning a last-minute sneak attack or something?" said Frieza, "I like it! Come on, show me!" Watchdog Man and Drive Knight bent down nominally and sprinted again to pummel Frieza. Frieza held out his hands to meet their attack, but just as they were inches away from his hands, they jumped up several feet above them. "Huh?" Instead of attacking him, the two warriors deliberately avoided him, and began to jump about midair in multiple different directions.

"Stop running!" Frieza flew up and slammed Drive Knight to the ground. Watchdog Man changed his trajectory midair and pounced on Frieza's chest, striking him with rapid unorganized blows from his paws. Frieza grabbed Watchdog Man's wrist and threw him to the ground; the muscular lizard flew down to the ground, held his elbow out, and slammed Watchdog Man in the gut, causing the hero to bark out in pain. But then, Watchdog Man took hold of Frieza's arm and squeezed it tightly.

"What are you doing? Whaatttt aarrreeee yyyyyuuuuu-" Frieza's speech began to blur; coming up right behind him, Drive Knight stabbed his back with a tranquilizing agent. Watchdog Man must have purposefully kept his attention diverted so Drive Knight could inject him with this substance, but Frieza didn't understand; why were they doing this?

A deep grumbling fill the air. Frieza gazed in front of him, and realized Pig God hadn't moved a muscle and seemed to be deep in concentration. It took a few seconds to realize that the deep grumbling was coming from Pig God. Mustering up all the brainpower he could, Frieza regained his thoughts and shouted out, "What is he doing?"

Pig God let out a small chuckle. "I'm preparing to use my ultimate ability."

"Huh?"

Pig God could see Frieza wasn't following him, so the fat hero decided to speed him up. "Due to the many meals and monsters I eat, my liver and stomach need to create very strong acids to properly digest the food without any ill effects. This might not seem like much, but one time, when I was in a desperate battle with a mysterious being, I felt a massive surge in my insides, and before I knew it, I expelled an amazingly acidic liquid that not only dissolved the mysterious being, but everything behind it for more than a mile."

Frieza felt a fist wrap around his heart. "No..."

"Oh yes," said Drive Knight, "And with the tranquilizing agent I injected in you, you won't be able to properly dodge it."

"NOOO!" Frieza's ki flared to life as angrily attempted to throw the S-class heroes off of him, but his ki was flickering on and off due to the disorientation of the tranquilizing agent. The S-class heroes didn't budge an inch and fervently held onto the lizard as tightly as they possibly could.

The obese hero didn't like this. "Watchdog Man! Drive Knight! Get out of there! If you get caught in the attack, your bodies will be completely vaporized!"

"We can't!" shouted Drive Knight, "I don't know how long the tranquilizing agent will last! The serum was designed to instantly put an opponent to sleep, but Frieza's body is somehow able to resist it! We have to hold him in place! This is the last option we have!"

"You can't do this!" yelled Pig God.

"We have to!" replied Watchdog Man, "I can't let anyone in Q-city be put at risk. This is the only way!"

Pig God simply couldn't accept this; the internal battle between allowing the heroes to die in his attack and putting an end to the first God-level monster in humanity's history was raging intensely inside of him. To trade lives like this, it made him sick to his gargantuan stomach, and to make it worse, to end their lives in such a gruesome way.

"But-"

"It's alright!" Watchdog Man stared into the eyes of his fellow hero, and the obese hero was taken aback by the calmness in his gaze. The hero had already come to terms with his fate. "This is what we signed up for. Didn't we?" Drive Knight looked at the two of them and nodded.

"You fools!" screamed Frieza, "Let me go! LET ME GO!"

"This is the end of the line for you, Frieza!"

"PIG GOD!" screamed Drive Knight, "DO IT!"

The obese hero knew that there was no convincing them to change their minds. They were determined to sacrifice themselves to save humanity, and nothing Pig God did could make them thing otherwise. This was it.

"SUPER ACIDIC VAPORIZING BELCH!" Pig God summoned the power from deep within his stomach, and vomited a lime-green acid. The force and speed at which the liquid was expelled was like a jet stream, and in no time at all, all three fighters were enveloped in the acid, and the entire street along with it.

"NOOOOOOOOOOO!" The acid was like a massive flood that swept through the city. It took about half a minute for the acid to finally disperse throughout the city. Pig God was too terrified to open his eyes and look at the destruction he wrought and the lives he took from the Earth. When he did, he was mortified: the range and force of the attack was even more devastating than the last time he performed the move. Spanning for about a mile, the concrete buildings were but puddles of gray ooze. Gray smoke was rising from all of the melted objects, making it appear as if the city were on fire.

"Where are they..." Pig God said this with blissful ignorance. Everything was covered by the gray smoke, so the obese hero couldn't see what happened to any of them. Then, the smoke began to clear, and Pig God could see what had happened, but he instantly wished he didn't. On the ground, there was some black ooze in place of Drive Knight's body, with only his head remaining unmelted, and a few feet adjacent, there were white hairs flying up in the sky, and there were only a few bone fragments left of the hero's body. Pig God choked at the sight. "They're truly gone." They had given their lives to save the human race for extinction, and it was the highest price they could have paid. Pig God dropped to his knees, and he lost all feeling in his arms. The pain was just too much. A single tear fell down the hero's face. They died true heroes.

"I'm going to make sure humanity remembers your sacrifice today," muttered Pig God, "I promise."

"Ah my friend, I'm afraid their sacrifice was in vain." Pig God felt his spirit dissolve like everything else around him when he heard that voice. No, it couldn't be. "Please, don't let it be..."

"Oh, it is." The smoke cleared, revealing Frieza with his black aura enveloped around him, smiling in glee at the hero's defeated stance. "That was a close call. If I hadn't powered up when I did and protected myself from the acid, your friends' sacrifices may have very well not been in vain, especially with the reacting agent inside my body. I applaud your valiant effort; besides Saitama, that was perhaps the closest I've ever been to facing defeat." Frieza slowly flew toward Pig God, who was still on his knees. To him, it was over. He hit Frieza with everything he had, and it failed. Two S-class heroes gave their lives for nothing, and the rest of the S-class has been defeated. There was no one left to save humanity. Frieza had won. The S-class Hero didn't even have the will to look at Frieza, for such a tremendous loss was too much to bear.

Frieza softly cackled, and he pointed his finger at the hero's head as he prepared to finish his opponent off. "Oh, it isn't all bad. On the bright side, you'll die as you lived-" Frieza fired his Death Beam, piercing through the hero's skull and ending the hero's life in an instant.

"A pig."

* * *

 **Damn dude, such a sad ending! Three S-class heroes killed by Frieza! I thought there would be some good news!**

 **For those who haven't read the webcomic, apparently Pig God says he has this hidden power, and he didn't want to use it even against multiple Dragon level monsters, so I guessed what the special power was based on his character. Also, I hope none of the three heroes were OOC, since I don't really know how they talk and what they're like in general.**

 **Regarding the tanquilizing agent, this is a chemical substance, not a physical attack. Effects of poisons and chemicals still affect the body. While there might be more resistance, which is the case for Frieza due to his enhanced body.**

 **But what about Saitama and the others? Yea, this was more of a Frieza chapter. I guess you'll have to find out what happened to Saitama and the others on Chapter 28 of The Space Emperor's Besiege!**


	28. Colonization

**Hey Chapter 28 is up! We'll see how the other heroes are doing and what exactly they're going to do after their bitter loss at Frieza's hands. Here ya go, without further ado!**

* * *

"Like a pig." With a final energy attack, the three S-class heroes and the only remaining heroes that stood even a remote chance of fending this monster off were killed, leaving no one left to stop this monster's calamitous conquering of Planet Earth.

"Well, it appears that's all taken care of. Now, let me get back to business..." Frieza flew up and traveled back to the site where Zarbon and the rest of his foot soldiers were standing. The soldiers loosened up when they saw the smile on Frieza's face and the relaxed way his arms were at his sides. This meant they didn't have to worry about being test targets for his anger or amusement.

"I'm assuming those three are dead?" asked Zarbon.

"Do you really have to ask?" said Frieza.

"My apologies, I just thought one of them might have been smart enough to submit to your will."

"I did too."

Karmath's curiosity peaked, and he spoke out. "What would you like us to do, Lord Frieza?"

"Let's see..." Frieza put his fingers under his chin and thought of the best course of action. After pondering for a few moments, he managed to lay out his future plans and pointed to Karmath and Orlen. "I've decided: since I'm in a good mood, and I mean a REALLY good mood, I'll give the two of you promotions and your very own planet. After all, if it wasn't for you, this opportunity for immortality would have never come across."

The two footsoldiers felt like they'd been transported to cloud nine. Just barely managing to contain their happiness and jump into the sky, their bodies momentarily shook and they instantly made a 90 degree bow to their master. "THANK YOU SO MUCH, LORD FRIEZA!" squealed Karmath.

Frieza softly chuckled. "It is just the kind of gentleman I am. Now that the biggest threats have been practically dealt with, we can begin colonizing this planet. Zarbon, call in a construction ship and tell them to bring equipment for a Class 10 commanding base." Zarbon's eyebrows raised up: the way that construction worked depended on the type of planet they were colonizing. If the planet was just a small dustball with only local resources and very few indigenous people, then a class 1 base would be produced, meaning there'd only a very small base with maybe 5-10 soldiers and perhaps a healing pod if they were lucky. But a Class 10 base was the highest-ranking class in the construction line, and it meant that not only would there be several hundred soldiers, but there would also be dozens of high-end regeneration tanks, a communications station, advanced research facility, factories for products such as blasters, scouters and armor, and even a training campus. Oftentimes, Class 10 bases would house the highest-ranking members of the Galactic Frieza Army, implying that Frieza intended to stay here for quite a while.

"Yes, my lord."

"Now before I return to the ship," Frieza turned around to the bulk of the soldiers, "Is there any other information that might be useful? Like did you find out about any more powerful warriors or other organizations that would either join us or be a threat to the Galactic Frieza Army?"

"Well..." Some of the soldiers were having a tough time speaking up, as being on the spotlight wasn't something they were used to. One soldier with yellow skin and a bulky frame spoke up. "When we were scouting the cities, we noticed that in almost all of the cities, there was at least one individual with a power level of over 10,000." Frieza curiously hummed: that was certainly noteworthy. Another soldier with red skin and large fangs in the crowd followed up. "And at the farthest city, our scouters detected several power levels. Most of them were only a couple hundred, but there were a few energy levels that ranged in the thousands. Two of them even had a power level of 30,000. It was so powerful, my scouter momentarily malfunctioned."

Frieza nodded his head, clearly impressed with the high energy levels. "Nice, very nice. Those kind of power levels could definitely be useful. Alright then, it's decided: I'm going to return to the ship for some quality me-time, and after a good night's rest, I'm going to go down to the location of this horde of power levels to "negotiate". Meanwhile, the rest of you who aren't grievously injured span out to the remaining cities and begin spreading the word of their new ruler. The soldiers who're injured, return to the ship and wait for your turn in the regeneration machines. For cities that have warriors too powerful for you to handle, just leave them for me to handle tomorrow. Is that understood?"

All of the soldiers saluted their master and shouted out in unison, "Yes Lord Frieza!"

"Excellent. Take this Dr. Genus and the regenerator back to the ship." 4 soldiers who weren't brutally injured picked up Dr. Genus and Zombieman and began their flight back to the main ship. Likewise, Frieza and Zarbon flied together in the air and soared on ahead of the soldiers carrying the bodies.

"I'm glad to see that you're so content, Lord Frieza," exclaimed Zarbon, "You've really amazed me with your new form."

"It is glorious, isn't it?" gloated Frieza.

"With that caped baldy out of the way, nobody on this mudball can fend off the Frieza Force. Planet Earth if finally yours."

* * *

While traveling City A and returning to the headquarters, the Hero Hunter Garou was trailing behind the heroes by a few dozen meters. At the moment, Garou had no idea what to do. The level of power displayed by Saitama and Frieza was astounding: they kept on pushing their limits and achieving new levels of strength like it was nothing. Garou had no doubt in his mind that Frieza could annihilate him with only a light touch; the only way for him to put an end to that beast was to become even stronger. But how?! How could that be done?! The gap between them was just too big to be filled, and he had absolutely no idea how to lessen the gap.

Garou's vision of absolute fairness through absolute evil, and from what he saw of this Frieza character, he was just a bully who subjugated everyone under him. He wasn't fair: he wasn't what absolute evil was supposed to be. In order to change the balance of the world order and become the strongest monster on the planet, he had to surpass and defeat Frieza, as well as that Saitama character. The only way he could do that was by becoming even stronger.

Garou was gonna try to find more heroes and defeat them. If he was lucky, maybe one of the S-class heroes would be roaming around and he'd have the chance to take care of them. Yes, that would be the best way to go about it. Garou's malicious smile spread across his face. "I'll secure my place as this planet's strongest monster no matter what it takes!"

* * *

The Saiyan General Nappa soared through the sky and within seconds, the building Nappa had broken out of came into view, and with his enormous speeds, it only took seconds for Nappa to arrive at the site. Once he arrived, he noticed Sonic controlling a very large and bright ball of ki in his hand. Nappa couldn't help but smirk; looked like the speedy prick was advancing rather far in his training.

Sonic's head moved up when he heard a whooshing come closer to him, and it was Nappa. The bright orb of ki vanished when Sonic's concentration broke. Nappa looked pretty banged up, and he had a scowl on his face. He'd felt several very large vibrations, which presumably originated from some sort of battle he was in, but for some reason, the vibrations became larger and larger as time passed, with the last one being enough to knock him off his feet and knock some of the wall structure loose. "You're back." Nappa landed in the hole and walked up to Sonic. "What the hell happened to you?" asked Sonic.

Nappa slapped his hand over his eyes. "It's a long story. I had a monumental fight with my former boss, Frieza." Nappa grit his teeth once he finished the sentence, as if what he was about to say was extremely difficult. Sure enough, Sonic's assumption was correct. "He beat me, despite my best efforts. Another fighter came in, was defeated, and then Saitama-"

"Wait, what?" Sonic interrupted when he heard Saitama's name come up. "What about Saitama?"

"He came in and fought Frieza in a one-on-one battle. Saitama held the upper hand for the majority of the battle. Unfortunately, Frieza underwent a massive transformation and defeated Sai-"

"WHAT?!" Sonic's mouth hung wide open, and he stepped back, for the shock was too great to bear. Saitama, defeated? No! That couldn't be! The only one who would have the honor of defeating Saitama was Sonic! Who the hell did this Frieza character think he was? But more importantly, the idea that there was someone powerful enough to defeat Saitama was extremely unsettling. This Frieza must be a truly mighty foe indeed. Nappa could sense the shock and amazement Sonic was experiencing after hearing this news, and he completely understood where he was coming from. "As shocking as it sounds, Frieza defeated Saitama, despite his best efforts. He, alongside some of his hero friends, managed to escape with their lives. All of them should be in this building."

"I see... So how much more powerful is this Frieza character compared to Saitama."

Nappa's head lowered downward. "The margin is significantly wide, and compared to me, as much as I hate to admit it, I'm just an ant, and he's a dinosaur."

"That's a pretty large margin..." For a moment, both of them were silent, as they were too focused on what their next moves would be. For Nappa, he'd have to go through some massive training and somehow find a way to control and enhance the power of a Super Saiyan, and if he was lucky, he might reach a level beyond a Super Saiyan. But how would he do that? What kind of training would he have to do? Who would know the right training?

Then it hit him: Saitama. He overheard Saitama talking with Frieza about some sort of training he did, and seeing the regular level of the indigenous people, he had to have gone through some sort of rigorous, unrelenting, torturous training to become as powerful as he was. Maybe if he picked up a few pointers from Saitama, he could become strong enough to challenge Frieza. But how would his associates handle his presence? He was an outlaw, a monster to the heroes in this society. If he tried to approach Saitama, they might attack him. Then again, they did witness Nappa fighting Frieza, the threat they'd been preparing to fight for quite some time, so that might buy some points for him. Besides, he could use his knowledge of ki and teach all of them how to utilize their ki to fly and fire energy blasts. Sure, it might be annoying to teach so many individuals at once, but if he could handle the speedy prick, he could handle anyone.

"Alright, I think I've got an idea! What we'll do is make a bargain and learn how Saitama became so powerful by training with him and-"

Sonic blatantly interrupted Nappa once again. "TRAIN WITH HIM?! I'M NOT TRAINING WITH MY SWORN NEMESIS!" shouted Sonic, "I've spent all this time to BEAT Saitama, not WORK with him!"

"Sonic, you have to understand, I don't know how he became so strong. We could spend the rest of our lives training with only the knowledge we have now, and not come even close to the level of power Saitama has now. And keep this in mind, there are others besides Saitama who're more powerful than you. For instance, your criminal friend is more powerful than you, and one of the other heroes has become even stronger than me through some sort of sudden modification. You don't have to talk to Saitama or anyone else, I'm not asking that of you. I'm just asking you to tolerate their presence. Once you think you've become strong enough, I URGE you to challenge Saitama." Nappa held his finger up and pointed it at Sonic. "Besides, remember Rule #1!"

Sonic's first response was a low growl, but he quickly stopped and sank down to the floor. Such a choice was something he despised making, but when it was the only choice, it appeared he'd have to give in. Sonic ran his hands through his hair and heaved a great sigh. "Fine, let's go and find Saitama and his little pals." Sonic picked himself up from the ground. "Do you know where they are?"

"I can sense his energy in the building," replied Nappa, "Follow me." Nappa walked to the wall, craned his hand back, and punched the wall, shattering it and creating another large hole. "Saitama's waiting for us."

* * *

"ALL HEROES, RETURN TO THE HERO ASSOCIATION! I REPEAT, ALL HEROES RETURN TO THE HERO ASSOCIATION!" At the Hero Association headquarters, things were nothing short of an absolute mess. Many of the staff members were receiving dozens, no hundreds of calls from distressed citizens, asking them where the S-class heroes had gone and why they weren't sending in more heroes. The staff members were doing the best they could to calm them down, but they themselves felt like bawling and hiding under their desks. At the same time, they were attempting to rein in as many heroes as they could back to the association, but so far, only about a dozen came back, one of those being Blizzard of Hell, as well as Iaian, Bushidrill, and Okamaitachi.

The staff members thought at the S-class heroes could handle the supposed God-level threat that arrived a few miles ahead of City A, but when they saw the heroes arrive with wounds all over their bodies, blood trailing over their clothes, they knew they'd failed. A quarter of the staff members actually fled the building and ran for their lives in every direction. Sitch himself felt like he was about to lose it. He just couldn't help it: everything had gone to absolute, monumental, all-encompassing shit. Frieza defeated Saitama, humanity's last line of defense, and also left all of the S-class heroes battered and broken beyond fighting capability. In the laboratory, Sitch was there with Bofoi, Dr. Kuseno, and Child Emperor, who were attempting to do damage control on this situation, but there wasn't much they could do.

At the moment, the S-class heroes were quickly pacing through the hallway, going to Sitch to strategize and see what else could even be done. Then, running from across the hall in her high heels, the Blizzard of Hell and Atomic Samurai's three disciples ran across the hall, dirty and apparently weakened, although it was nothing in comparison to the damage the S-class heroes had suffered. Tatsumaki felt a small hint of relief in this dark hour, knowing that her sister managed to make it to safety, with the same applying to Atomic Samurai toward his disciples. "Tatsumaki!" Fubuki ran up to her older sister and slightly bent her knees, while Atomic Samurai's three disciples crowded around their master. "Are you alright? What happened to you?"

"Are you injured?" asked Iaian, worrying over the significant blood spots and dirt all over him. None of his disciples had ever seen their master so beaten down. Fubuki looked up at the rest of the heroes. "What happened to all of you?" None of them even had the will nor the bravery to look her in the eye. "Sis, nobody wants to talk about it." Her eyes gazed to Saitama, and she felt her heart drop to the floor. "Saitama was defeated?" Genos looked down to the ground, and with great sadness, gave a slow, singular nod of his head. Fubuki's hands covered her mouth. "Oh my god..."

"Come on, we have to go to see Sitch," demanded Sweet Mask, for he knew this wasn't the time to stand idle, and he sprinted across the hall, with the other heroes joining him a few seconds later.

At Bofoi's laboratory, the front door opened up, revealing Sitch, Dr. Kuseno, Child Emperor, and Bofoi working on the computers and surveying over each other. As soon as Sitch saw them, he went sprinting up, angrily searching for the one to blame for all of this: Saitama. "Where is he?" shouted Sitch, "Where's the bastard that allowed the Devil of Frost to power up to 100%! I'll finish that monster's job and kill him myself!"

"Minister Sitch!" A voice came up on one of the monitors of Bofoi's lab, and Sitch paced back to the monitors. "Yes? What is it?"

"We managed to find the location of Pig God, Drive Knight, Watchdog Man and Zombieman, and..." The voice petered out, as he was having a hard time actually finishing the sentence. Sitch repeatedly banged the countertop and shouted, "WHAT? WHAT IS IT?!"

"Pig God, Drive Knight and Watchdog Man have all been killed." Everyone in the room felt their blood run cold and their bodies freeze up. Was that correct? Three S-class heroes were killed. "We found the vaporized remains of Watchdog Man and Drive Knight, and Pig God's head had a large hole that went straight through his body. As for Zombieman, we saw a few of the alien soldiers carrying up in the sky. We're not sure what they intend to do with him."

"This can't be real..." Sitch felt his legs turn to jelly, and he slowly sunk down to the floor. As if things couldn't be any worse, then he had to hear this abysmal news. "Three S-class heroes, undoubtedly killed by Frieza, and the fourth one captured for god-knows-what reason." Sitch slowly bent his back down and covered his eyes with his hands. "This is a complete nightmare."

Despite the momentary mourning of the three S-class heroes, Genos knew that now was not the time for that, however harsh it may have sounded, for there were more immediate problems to address. Genos walked to the front of the crowd, with his master in his arms. "We need to evacuate." Sitch's eyes narrowed. "What do you mean?"

"They have several scouters that can track our energy levels, and with high energies such as ours, they will locate us in no time-flat." The other S-class heroes recoiled when this fact hit them. They were in barely any condition to do more running. "But where will we go?" said Atomic Samurai, "With that kind of technology, they could track us anywhere across the planet."

"That's right," said Superalloy Darkshine, "All Frieza needs is our location, and he'll kill us all!"

"What the fuck are we gonna do?" said Metal Bat, "We're so dead!"

"STOP!" Everybody's voices felt flat when Dr. Kuseno yelled out. The good doctor, having gotten everyone's attention, walked to the center of the room and placed his hands on the countertop. "There's another solution."

"What do you mean, doctor? What solution?" asked Genos.

"You see, while I was studying the scouter technology, I did some research on exactly how it is that they detect the energy levels, and I discovered something. What I learned is that every being has internal energy, a fourth state of matter that flows throughout their body, and this energy flows out of us. When it does, it releases waves, electromagnetic waves, similar to radio signals and gamma rays, and depending on how powerful a person is, more of these waves will be released. Using what we know about the properties of electromagnetic waves and the electromagnetic spectrum, I realized some key things: one, like regular waves, it becomes increasingly difficult for the waves to be detected the further underground a source is. Two, if the waves are blocked by materials that are used to block electromagnetic waves, such as thick lead lining, or perhaps use an advanced scrambling system, then the scouter will be unable to track the energy waves." Dr. Kuseno turned to Sitch. "Does this headquarters have an underground bunker or lair?"

"We had a bunker built in the worst-case scenario of a monster invasion or God-level threat as such when the Hero Association was first formed. Not only is there food and supplies to last for several months, but there is also a large training area built in hopes of training heroes to become strong enough to defeat said monsters."

"Well isn't that convenient," muttered Tatsumaki.

"I haven't been able to create a device that masks or intercepts the energy waves just yet, but for now, the best course of action would be to hide underground." Dr. Kuseno heaved a great sigh of distress. "I'm sorry things have become forlorn. I'll try to help in anyway I can."

"Thank you," said Sitch, his voice barely above a whisper. "Come on everyone, I'll go show you the hatch to the bunker." Sitch softly nudged his way through the crowd of heroes, with his head down and his eyes blackened with darkness and despair. He went through the hall at a jogging pace, when his run came to a screeching halt. The other heroes stopped, and gave each other confused looks as to why he stopped so abruptly, when there answer came upon looking up: standing at the end of the hall was the same warrior who fought Frieza before Genos, along with a young companion standing besides him. "It's you!" shouted Genos. The rest of the heroes scrunched their faces and took fighting positions.

"Take it easy..." Nappa slowly placed his hands up. The Saiyan General repeatedly tapped Sonic's leg with his foot and gave him a sharp glance. Sonic grumbled, but lifted his hands up into the air as well. Nappa knew this probably wasn't gonna work, but he had to try anyway. "Look I know we got off on the wrong foot, and I know that I might've hurt a few of your guys," said Nappa, "But I have a proposition for you."

"Proposition," shouted Sitch, "Why would we listen to any proposition of yours?!"

"You attempted to eliminate both myself and Saitama," followed Genos, "You and your short associate!"

"Look, I only came here because my former boss ordered me to, and I'm not working for him anymore. You all saw that yourselves!"

"He's right." King took the initiative and walked up to front of the crowd of heroes. "When all of you were unconscious, Frieza revealed to me that he annihilated his home-planet in fear of the emergence of the legend of the "Super Saiyan". For 25 years, he deceived the saiyans by convincing them a giant meteor destroyed his home-planet. He only worked for Frieza because he had no choice."

"That's right," replied Nappa. "Besides, if I really wanted to eliminate all of you, I would have done it already with only a single energy blast. You've seen my power yourselves: you know I could. Look, we all have a common enemy. I want that repulsive reptile dead as much as you do. And I can offer you something extremely beneficial."

A benefit? This served to pique the interests of several of the heroes, and most of them relaxed their fighting stances. "And what would that be?" questioned Genos.

"I can teach you all how to fly and fire energy blasts just as I can." All of the heroes were taken aback by this, and each of them stared at each other quizzically. King was the first to speak up. "What do you mean?"

"Look, all of you have internal energy within you. You all have the power to fly and shoot energy blasts just like I can, and with your strength, the speed at which you fly and the intensity of your energy blasts will be extraordinary. Also, I can teach you how to better utilize your internal energy and improve your battle performance."

While most of the heroes seemed to take a liking to this idea, Sitch's face didn't soften. "I'm not buying it," said Sitch. "I think this is all some sort of ruse to root us out to your leader. It all just seems too convenient! And what about him?" Sitch pointed his finger to Sonic. "He's a wanted criminal! I bet that he'll attempt to slit our throats the minute he sees our guard is down! Why would I trust him? Or you?"

"Because you really don't have too much of a choice, and you don't have to worry about this speedy prick doing anything rash. I'll keep him in check." Sitch tried to retort, but found nothing to retort with. Granted, Demon Cyborg could probably take care of him, but he would take down several S-class heroes in the process, and they couldn't deal with such losses. "Sitch," King turned around and stared Sitch straight in the eyes. "We need him."

Sitch stared in awe at King for a few moments, and then sighed. "Alright." Sitch ran his hand through his hair and stretched his back out so that he was staring at the sky. "If the strongest man in the world says we should, then I'll take his word for it."

"Yes, the strongest man in the world..." Genos quietly spoke and gave King an icy glare. King felt an alarm go off in his brain: why was Genos staring at him like that? Before he had the time to ponder a reasonable answer, Sitch motioned for everyone to follow him, including Nappa and Sonic. With two extra members of this group, they all paced down about three flights of dimly-lit stairs until he reached the bottom of the staircase, where there was a room with several large boilers and pipes leading up to the rest of the building. He then went to the far right corner, where there was another large boiler. Sitch began to touch the boiler's edge, until he felt a small ridge with a small button. He pushed the button, and a square panel popped out of the boiler. He put his hand on the panel, and after it scanned his fingerprints, the boiler opened up, revealing a hole with a steel ladder. "Come on, everyone move!" One-by-one, they entered the small opening and slid down the ladder. While sliding down, Genos was careful with his master's body and kept him slung over his shoulders. Once the first heroes made it down to the bottom of the room, they were met with absolute darkness. They couldn't even tell how big the room was due to the blackness.

"Allow me."

Nappa paced a few steps in front of the other heroes and opened his palm. The Saiyan General formed a bright ball of energy in his palm, growing it to the size of a large boulder, and pushed it up to the center of the room. With the ball of energy serving as a light source, they could see that there were at least 4 different rooms. The room they were in was rather small, but the room in front of them was very expansive, filled with several punching dummies, targets, and in the center, a combat ring presumably designed for one-on-one sparing. In the other rooms, there were boxes willed with packaged food and drinks, and in the other, there were several beds.

Shortly afterwards, the last two individuals, King and Sitch, came down the ladders. "Allow me to activate the generators to turn the lights on." Sitch walked to the end of the room, where there was a panel none of the others had noticed before. He oened the panel, and flicked on all of the switches. In an instant, several of the lights hanging on the wall burst to life, illuminating the room even more than it already was, causing some of the heroes to close their eyes. "Guess we don't need that anymore," said Nappa, closing his fist and dissipating the energy sphere.

"We don't have any time to waste," said Sweet Mask, "We should start whatever training is necessary immediately and-"

"Hold on Sweet Mask." Genos interrupted the A-class hero, and gave another cold look at King. "There's something that I've been meaning to discuss." King shifted nervously in his place. There it was again, that distrusting look in the cyborg's eyes. He'd been giving those quite frequently ever since his upgrade. "What do you want to discuss Genos?" said King, keeping a cool tone of voice.

"Something is off about you King.

"Ever since I acquired my new body, I'm now able to read the precise energy readings of every living being, and according to my sensors, your energy level is only 2. From what I've seen, that's lower than the average C-class hero." Everyone felt this massive twist spin their heads around. Genos continued, "At first, I thought it was merely a glitch in the system, but after seeing that you never did battle against Frieza, it made more sense."

Some of the other heroes began to murmur to one another. Many of them also had growing doubts of King's decisions, his lack of action making less and less sense throughout the battle against Frieza. But could it really be true? King was the man! He had the highest ranking of the Hero Association, and his reputation was legendary! The idea that such an intimidating man who bordered on godliness, who killed several demon and dragon-level monsters singlehandedly, was mind-blowing, even with the world-shaking events that transpired today.

"Dude, just come clean." The voice was dispassionate and neutral; it belonged to only one person. Everyone turned their bodies, and sure enough, Saitama, the hero who completely and utterly screwed the S-class heroes and the entire planet, was standing up, staring at King with his hands drooping down lifelessly.

The next few seconds were absolute chaos, and all of the attention drawn towards King was completely forgotten. Most of the heroes began shouting derisively at the bald hero, and a few of them actually lunged at him and pinned him to the ground, specifically Sweet Mask and Sitch. Sitch stared down at Saitama with absolute fury. "WHAT HAVE YOU DONE?!" screamed Sitch, "YOU WERE SUPPOSED TO TAKE CARE OF THAT MONSTER! I TRUSTED YOU! I PROMOTED YOU TO S-CLASS UPON REALIZING MY GRAVE MISTAKE! I APOLOGIZED?! AND HOW DID YOU REPAY MY GENEROSITY? BY DOOMING NOT ONLY THE HERO ASSOCIATION, BUT MANKIND ITSELF!"

"That's right!" continued Sweet Mask, "Who knows what unspeakable atrocities Frieza will commit on the people of Earth? He'll most likely enslave them, subjugate them and force them under a new tyrannical system of government! And we're powerless to stop him! Because of your failures!" Instead of attempting to argue against them, pushing them off of him, telling them to calm down and get off of him, he just laid on the ground absolutely motionless. But there was another key difference: unlike his typical appearance of blank eyes and derpy face, his face was now changed into his more serious expression. The fiery passion in his eyes during his battle with Frieza was snuffed out; the way Frieza sadistically toyed with him and crushed the spirits of someone as strong-willed as Saitama was daunting. Saitama's lips were pulled down, his eyelids were drooped down, and all the muscles in his body were drained of energy. It was as if they were looking at his corpse.

"Release Saitama!" Genos grabbed their shoulders with both of his arms and pulled them back, and the teenage cyborg shot in front of his master, taking a defensive stance in the process. "I fully understand the mistakes my master has made, as well as the anger directed toward him, but now is not the time for fighting! We have enough issues to deal with, and further division is the last thing we need!" Genos waved his hands out to the others and momentarily took the mantle of leadership to reason the other heroes into . "We need to focus all of our effort on training. This is the only way we hope of standing up to Frieza. Luckily, with my master here and-" Genos momentarily paused his sentence and motioned his hand toward Nappa, rather uncomfortable motioning to him, and continued his sentence with an aggravated and more hostile tone. "And with his knowledge about energy, we could further accelerate the rate of our training. Master Saitama, if we can get started right away-"

"No." Saitama blatantly interrupted his disciple. All of the heroes had a hard time believing how rudely Saitama interrupted him and the instant rejection of this alternative plan. What the hell was wrong with him?

"Saitama? What the hell?" said Nappa, "What's the matter with you?"

"I-I- just-" Saitama didn't even finish his sentence before storming off to the room with all of the beds, pacing off to be alone and lament his horrendous failure.

"Master?" Genos felt his heart sink. He had never seen his master this saddened before; the gravity of this defeat must have sunken down to his very soul. While Genos and Nappa looked on with worried faces, Sitch walked up to the center of the horde of heroes. "Alright, all of you rest up for now. After getting some sleep and allowing your bodies to heal, we'll have a more in-depth discussion of our future plans. Until then, just sit tight and wait for further instructions." Seeing as how Sitch was right, all of the heroes reluctantly dispersed, also having completely forgotten and disregarded the cyborg's statements about King due to the other problems on-hand, slowly walking away to their own little corners to cope with their loss and grieve in their own way.

The Saiyan General walked up to Genos, who stepped back upon sensing Nappa's close proximity to him. "Saitama's not looking good," said Nappa, stating the obvious.

"My master is simply feeling the sadness accompanied with his loss to Frieza," said Genos.

"We need to talk to him. You and me. He needs to see your familiar face, and I think I can manage to get a few words out of him. We have to get him out of this funk; for all our sakes."

The teenage cyborg momentarily clenched his fists, but conceded to Nappa's words. With the world coming to an end, it needed a man like Saitama. It couldn't survive without him.

"Very well," muttered Genos, "Let us go."

* * *

 **God, you can really see the pain and despondency flowing from Saitama and the rest of the heroes. It's a real bummer. For the energy, I'm using science in an attempt to logically explain how energy is tracked by scouters; to me, it makes the most sense. Anyway, until Chapter 29!**


	29. Broken

_Hey everybody! Guess what? I didn't give up on this story! I know it took me longer than usual to update, and I know a lot of you might be pissed about it, but lately,_ I've been doing a lot of other stuff, like playing SSB Ultimate with my brothers, playing Red Dead Redemption 2, studying for exams, sending college applications, all that stuff. Anyway, here's Chapter 29, where we'll see just how Saitama and the other heroes are dealing with this problem!

* * *

The Saiyan General walked up to Genos, who stepped back upon sensing Nappa's close proximity to him. "Saitama's not looking good," said Nappa, stating the obvious.

"My master is simply feeling the sadness accompanied with his loss to Frieza," said Genos. The young cyborg couldn't help but bear some of the weight of Saitama's loss; after all, he's failed to kill Frieza just like Saitama. If he'd been quicker, Frieza wouldn't have reached his final form.

"We need to talk to him. You and me. He needs to see your familiar face, and I think I can manage to get a few words out of him. We have to get him out of this funk; for all our sakes."

The teenage cyborg momentarily clenched his fists, but conceded to Nappa's words. Because he failed to kill Frieza, Genos knew he shared the blame for Saitama's defeat. It was his responsibility to help his master. With the world coming to an end, it needed a man like Saitama. It couldn't survive without him.

"Very well," muttered Genos, "Let us go."

* * *

Saitama was not the only hero who was wallowing in grief and shame. In fact, nearly all of the heroes were reciprocating these despondent emotions. Although it was to a less extreme level, they'd all failed in their own ways, and it was taking its toll on them.

The three disciples of the most powerful swordsman on the planet were huddled around their master, who was crouched on the floor with his knees opened with his head hanging in between them. He had his katana on top of his knees and was slowly rubbing his fingers over the edge of the blade repeatedly, the motion giving him some form of comfort. The three disciples felt worry gnaw at them, and they gave one another wary looks of unease. They'd never seen their master like this before. The bright atomic glow of his blade was now a dull gray. The calm, collected, and supremely confident master they were familiar with had utterly vanished.

"Master, what is the matter?" asked Iaian.

"I lost," muttered Atomic Samurai under his breath, causing a wave of shock to run through the hearts of his disciples. To them, it was more than just the loss; granted, hearing about the S-class heroes being defeated presumably meant that their master had been defeated as well, but to hear it from Kamikaze himself only made it more shocking, especially knowing that it could have dealt this big a blow to his pride.

"What?" said Okamaitachi, "How could that have happened?"

"That monster, he was unlike anything I'd ever seen before." Atomic Samurai's voice was dispatched and morose, as if verbally recounting this was causing him pain. "He was able to suppress his power in multiple stages, and even in his most suppressed state, he was able to expertly dodge my Atomic Slash with only minor difficulty."

"You mean he was able to react to 100 slashes in a single second?" exclaimed Bushidrill. Atomic Samurai slowly nodded. The swordsman continued. "And that was just the tip of the iceberg. The gap between that monster and I... it's too big. Even if I train for three lifetimes, I don't think I'll be able to close that gap."

"No!" shouted Iaian, "It's impossible! There can't be a monster that strong!"

Atomic Samurai shook his head. "After what I've seen today, nothing is impossible. Today, I was shown that in the end, I..." Kamikaze's stomach churned and revolted at what he was about to say because the truth hurt. "I am a weakling..."

"Master, NO!" Iaian frantically shook his head. "You're not-"

"The evidence is before me," interrupted Kamikaze, who lowered his head back to look at the ground. "In the end, I'm one of the weak."

* * *

The strongest esper on Planet Earth was standing in pain in the main lounge area. Her green, curly hair was dischiveled and partly burnt off from the repeated battles against Frieza. A stream of blood ran down the right side of her forehead; her black dress had several holes and tears with blood spots and bruises, and her right sleeve had been completely torn off. "Hey sis." Walking toward her sister with a bottle of water in her right hand and several bandages and wipes in her left hand was her younger sister. "Here you go sis." Fubuki handed her sister the bottle of water, and she immediately grabbed the bottle to gulp down the water.

"Now let me just..." Fubuki took one of the wipes and began to wipe off the blood stains. Tatsumaki swatted her sister's hands off of her. "God, I'm not a baby!" said Tatsumaki.

"I know, but look at you! At least let me-" Fubuki wiped the blood off of her face and quickly withdrew her hands. Once she finished the water bottle, she crushed it with her psychic powers and threw it to the corner of the room. Fubuki placed the bandages to her side and moved herself to the right of her older sister. They didn't really know what to say to one another, since they'd never been good with chit-chat, and Tatsumaki was in less of a mood for conversation than usual. After a few moments of silence, Fubuki decided to break the ice and came out with a straight-forward comment. "I've never seen you take such a beating in my life." Tatsumaki let out a harsh breath and blew out of his cheeks. "Because it's never happened before! That lizard's lucky!" Tatsumaki jerked her head toward her little sister and held up a finger. "If I'd have been at full strength, I would've beaten that little punk in 5 seconds flat!"

Fubuki slapped her hand over her eye, causing Tatsumaki to shoot her sister a confused look. "What's that supposed to mean?" said Tatsumaki.

"You should know very well what it means." Fubuki hunched her shoulders and put her hands to her sides. "Look at where we are! Look at what happened! I sensed the entire planet shaking from the battle between Saitama and this Devil of Frost! You're really telling me that you can stand up to a being whose power has the ability to destroy the entire planet?!"

Tatsumaki opened her mouth to retort, but all that came out were a series of stutters and mumbles which only served to prove her younger sister's point. Fubuki understood why her sister couldn't come to terms with this: ever since she was a kid, everybody revered her. She was the popular girl, the celebrity everybody adored. In her eyes, the entire world revolved around her. Well, truth-be-told, the only reason people idolized her was because they were afraid of her powers, but Fubuki would never tell her sister that. To make this problem even worse, her enormous psychic powers made it so even the strongest mysterious beings that showed up could never pose a serious threat to her. But today, for the first time ever, she knew what it felt like to lose. She knew what it felt like to be inferior. In a way, Tatsumaki could perhaps get a glimpse of how Fubuki felt. Alas, Fubuki's feelings about this were irrelevant. What was relevant was snapping her sister out of her prideful state and getting her to work together with the others. This was the only way they'd be able to defeat Frieza.

* * *

Standing at the edge of the room with his back against the wall was Speed-o-Sound Sonic. His eyes were at the ground, refusing to even look at any of the heroes when he didn't need to. Hopefully, none of them would get any funny ideas. He had no interest in getting to know any of these heroes. Most of all, he refused to even be in the same presence as-

"Kuto." Sonic's teeth clench together when he heard that voice. Slowly pacing up to Sonic was Flashy Flash, whose lips were formed into a scowl and his eyebrows were perched downward. When Sonic looked up, his eyes nominally widened. He actually looked... sad. Yet he quickly masked his surprise and gave Flash a cold stare. "Is there something I can do you, just to make sure I don't do it?" mocked Sonic.

Flashy Flash didn't scowl at Sonic's rudeness towards him. He didn't have the pride or confidence to fight back. "Kazuki, I just..." Flashy Flash felt the words stick in his throat. It was never like him to feel such sorrow and weakness, but like several of the other heroes, he'd never been so utterly dominated. Ever since he underwent his intense training, he thought everything would change. He thought that he'd trained himself to the maximum level possible, the highest level of power that only a select few in the world could ever hope to achieve, but in an instant, his beliefs were proven wrong. Like the rest of the heroes, not only was he knocked out by that Burter character in a stalemate, but he was absolutely pulverized by Frieza, who was using only a fraction of his full power, and was defeated with only a single blow. He'd never felt so helpless, so... afraid. The only other time he'd experienced this kind of fear was when...

Flashy Flash's brows furrowed downward: there was only one person in this world who'd ever seen him so vulnerable, the only person who'd been there when The Village had been annihilated by that monster, the only person who also experienced that feeling of helplessness, knowing that even with all of his powers, he could do nothing but watch as innocent people were being slaughtered. That person was standing right next to him, but unfortunately, that person loathed him with every fiber of his being, and Flashy Flash didn't know how to change that. Kazuki was just too stubborn; it was something they shared.

"I..." The weight of his loss and all of the emotions swirling inside finally caught with him, and the control on his legs weakened. The ninja hero slowly slid his back against the wall while letting his arms droop to the sides. It took a moment for him to come back to his senses, he looked Sonic in the eyes and muttered, "I'm sorry."

Upon hearing those words, Sonic's eyes softened, and his arms became uncrossed. Flashy Flash continued. "I never meant for our village to be destroyed. I just wanted to prove myself: I wanted to prove to the rest of our village that I was a true hero, a warrior who could handle even the toughest opponents by myself. I thought I'd learned my lesson. I thought my intense, bone-breaking training would be enough to handle the mightiest monsters. I thought I would never face another experience like the one at the Village. And yet..."

"You were powerless." Sonic blatantly interrupted Flashy Flash. Sonic scowled, his rougher demeanor surfacing again. "You were powerless to do anything against a truly powerful opponent. As I told you before, heroes can never protect anyone or defend anything. And now, it's not just the people of our village who've suffered this time: every soul on the planet has to pay the price for your weakness and the rest of your pals." Sonic spit out the last word with venom, causing the ninja hero's fists to clench up and his eyebrows to furrow. How could Kazuki say such terrible things while seeing him so weak? He expected him to at least stay silent and respect his openness, but he was just throwing this right back at his face. Well, if that was how he wanted it, two could play that game "Of course that's your response," replied Flashy Flash with a low, aggravated voice. "What more did I expect from an assassin such as yourself?"

Sonic glared daggers at Flashy Flash. "What's that supposed to mean?"

"All you care about is money. You don't care who you kill or what they've done: as long as you're paid, it's irrelevant. Your greed has consumed you, robbing you of any morals you once had." Flashy Flash straightened his back, and coldly said, "With enough money, I'm sure you would've even killed our master." Sonic felt every muscle in his body tense. For a moment, he stared at Flashy Flash. The ninja hero's stern gaze softened, and he was taken aback by the whirlwind of emotions flashing in Sonic's eyes. The first thing he could see was... hurt. Flashy Flash took it too far. "Kazuki, I didn't-"

Sonic was able to take Flashy Flash by surprise and immediately pinned Flashy Flash against the wall, lifting him a few inches off the floor. His elbow pressed against Kuto's neck, and his other hand was holding a small knife against his throat. Sonic's nostrils were flaring, and his body was trembling with rage. Flashy Flash couldn't help but be shocked by this unbridled rage. Flashy Flash expected Sonic to explode, but instead, Sonic spoke in a very low, soft voice, but there was no mistaking that he was beyond furious. "You have no idea what I feel," said Sonic, pressing the knife even deeper into his neck, drawing a pinprick of blood. "And if you ever say anything like that again, I'll make sure that this knife goes all the way through your throat." The two stayed silent for a moment, waiting for the other to make a move, seeing whether they'd fight back and trying to see how each of them were feeling. Then, after this long standstill, Sonic released his grip on Flashy Flash. The ninja assassin gave his former friend one last look before shoving his fists into his pockets and walking off to search for another place of solitude.

* * *

Like all the other heroes, the highest ranking hero in A-class was having some rather troubling thoughts of his own. He was the very first combatant to demonstrate his abilities, and he was instantly rendered immobile by Zarbon's ugliness. He hadn't even taken any serious damage from the fighter, he was just unable to fight back. The A-class hero slapped his hand against his forehead. What an embarrassment! And then, when all of the heroes combined their might against Frieza, he was powerless in the face of that ugly lizard's overwhelming power. Despite his grotesque appearances, each of his transformations granted him an explosive growth in power. It was unbelievable!

Sweet Mask rested his back against the wall. He craned his head up and stared blankly at the ceiling. "It's more than that..." whispered Sweet Mask. For him, perhaps the most shocking of all was Saitama's power. When Sweet Mask first saw his hero application, his very first thought was of his bald head and unappealing appearance. He'd completely disregarded his perfect score on the physical exams and has allowed him to be placed in the lowest rank of the lowest class, and every time he saw his name in the news and the way he assisted in defeating Demon and Dragon-level mysterious beings by landing the final blow, he was certain Saitama was merely lucky, and that the S-class heroes had done all of the major damage. Sweet Mask let out a sardonic chuckle. "How wrong was I?" Even though Saitama had lost, and even though he's been recklessly irresponsible, he was able to outmaneuver and overpower Frieza in his final form with minimal effort. He far surpassed the power he or any other S-class hero possessed, and however much he hated to admit it, he was most likely the best chance the heroes had at defeating Frieza. Sweet Mask sighed. He now wished he could go back in time and shoot Saitama all the way to S-class Rank 1. It was only now that he realized that Saitama did indeed have beauty, a beauty that far eclipsed his own: Saitama had the beauty of overwhelming power!

"I have to obtain it..." Sweet Mask clenched his fists and intensely whispered, "I have to obtain that overwhelming beauty somehow!"

* * *

Genos and Nappa walked over to calm Saitama down, but they weren't exactly sure what to say. It was obvious that Saitama was feeling like absolute garbage, and if they were being honest, everybody would agree with that statement. The most they could do was try to ease his mind, but it wouldn't be easy. When they entered the room, they found that Saitama wasn't in any of the beds. They peered over the rows of beds, trying to see where he could be hiding. After gazing over the 10th row of beds, Genos saw his master sitting in the corner, his face buried in his hands and his back curved downward like a sleeping infant as he curled up in shame. The guilt tormented him endlessly, gnawing at his insides and making him sick to his stomach.

Genos softly walked up to Saitama and tapped him lightly on the shoulder. "Master?"

The bald hero didn't bother meeting his disciple's gaze. "Go away, Genos."

"Master, we need your assistance." Genos put his hand on Saitama's left shoulder in an attempt to comfort him. "If humanity is to survive, all of us need your guidance, your unimaginable power. It's the only thing that can stand up to Frieza."

"I said go away Genos!" Saitama's face finally left his palms and he shot an angry look at Genos and Nappa, who was standing right behind the cyborg. When he saw Nappa though, his eyebrow furrowed up. He hadn't noticed Nappa before when he'd first woken up, so this was new to him. Nappa was freed? How did that happen? Did that mean he was on their side? "What're you doing here with Genos and the rest of the heroes?"

"I'm here to offer up my services and to help defeat our common enemy," replied Nappa, "And in order to do that, we're gonna need your support! We're gonna need your power!"

"My power meant jack-shit in the end," yelled Saitama, "You both saw it. And I let it happen! Everyone told me to take him out when I could, but I didn't listen! I thought that his power-up would only be enough to break a sweat, but it turns out, his power-up was enough to break me!"

"I understand that completely master, but no one could have anticipated such a large change. It's not as if you knew his power-up would be that large." Genos attempted to underscore the severity of Saitama's mistake as a means to put him at ease, but he could see it wasn't working, as he appeared just as despondent, if not more. "But this was just one mistake!"

In a sudden twist, Saitama shot up from his seated position and shot daggers at his disciple, causing him to back away in fear. "NO IT ISN'T! CAN'T YOU SEE? THIS IS ABOUT MORE THAN MY BATTLE WITH FRIEZA!"

"Huh?" uttered the cyborg. Genos didn't understand where Saitama was coming from. "What do you mean?"

Saitama let out a pain-riddled sigh, rubbing his hands through his face and head. After he'd regained his consciousness, a swirling, volatile vortex of unstable emotions were overflowing in Saitama's heart, threatening to burst it open into millions of pieces. The first obvious sensation he felt was guilt and shame of his ridiculous stupidity in allowing Frieza to reach 100%. He acted recklessly and selfishly, only caring about getting the rush of excitement from a real fight, and everyone on the planet was paying the price for it. But the guilt made him come to a realization about something else, something that he never considered or thought about until now that was racking his brain. "This battle and my major fuck-up made me realize how terrible of a hero I've really been."

Genos cut his hand through the air. "That's nonsense!" said Genos, "You're the most powerful hero on this planet!"

"Yea, and how have I used that power?" The bald hero's arms drooped to his sides. "How many times have I been late to the fight after other heroes have been sadistically toyed with? Every single time! How many lives were lost in the time it took me to get there, even though I could have made it to the destination in no time flat? I've treated it all like it was nothing, going at whatever time I pleased and never considering working out a strategy or finding a way to minimize damage. Take that giant monster who attacked D-city! I ended it with a single punch, but his body crushed dozens of buildings filled with god-knows-how-many people that died? I could have punched him back with enough force to move his body out of the city and avoid any fatalities, but no! I didn't give a freaking thought to it! And now, my stupidity's put every person on the planet at risk!" I don't deserve your admiration, Genos. I don't deserve my S-class ranking, I don't even deserve to be called a hero!" Saitama slammed his fist on the bed, splitting it in to and creating a crevice in the ground from the force of his blow. The bald hero's momentary raged fleeted after releasing his anger with his punch, and despondency took over once more, rendering all of his muscles useless and causing him to slump down onto the broken bed. "I'm nothing."

Genos somberly lowered his head down. The despondency and guilt appeared to have taken his master over completely, clouding his vision and judgement with only negative thoughts. It was like Saitama was a completely different person; he didn't even recognize him anymore. What could Genos say? How could he fix this?

"No, you're not." Saitama and Genos turned their heads up when they realized it was Nappa who spoke up. "That's a lie." Nappa rotated his body around and took a seat in the bed. Nappa wouldn't allow Saitama to talk about himself this way. He was one of the most honorable and strong-willed fighters he'd ever come across in his lifetime, and Saitama needed to know that. "Look, I'm not gonna bullshit you: what you said sounds pretty bad, and you may very well be right about the citizens that were inadvertently killed by you.." Saitama's head lowered, and Genos aggravatingly shoved Nappa's shoulder. "What are you saying?!" snarled Genos. Nappa held his hand up to the cyborg's face. "I wasn't done yet," replied Nappa, "And I'm a straight-forward guy. Now Saitama." Saitama didn't meet Nappa's eyes. "LOOK AT ME!" Not willing to have any of this self-pitying bullcrap, Nappa grabbed Saitama's head and forced him to stare him straight in the eyes. After silently gazing for a moment, Nappa let go of his grip on Saitama and quietly asked him a question. "Let me ask you somethin': while you're thinking of all the people that might've been inadvertently hurt or even killed by your actions, try and think about all of the lives you've saved through your heroic acts.

"How many people would've been killed if you never showed up to fight any of those monsters? How many cities would've been reduced to rubble? How many children are still getting to live their lives because they weren't killed by the monsters attacking their homes? For god's sake, it weren't for you, this planet would be a floating pile of space rocks destroyed by Boros long ago."

As Genos was listening to Nappa speak, his face began to light up. Nappa's words of inspiration were actually... inspiring! Saitama's dampened expression was starting to nominally lighten up. Nappa's lips pursed, and his eyebrows narrowed. "You may not believe in your strength, but I believe in it. And so does your disciple."

"That's right!" interjected Genos. "You are strong! Undeniably strong!" Genos joined the two bald warriors and sat to the left of Saitama. "I do not care what anyone else says. You've saved this planet countless times, and millions of people are still alive because of you. I can give you countless examples of how your actions have saved lives." Genos held out his hand and began counting with his fingers. "When you defeated the Deep Sea King and saved that entire shelter of civilians, when you destroyed the meteorite and prevented not only Z-city, but several other cities as well from being obliterated, and just as Nappa said moments ago, when you prevented Boros from destroying the entire planet and saving every civilian on Earth." Genos jabbed his finger at his chest repeatedly. "I am alive because of you. You saved my life not once, but twice! You've allowed me to continue walking on this planet and work as a server of justice! You need to understand that!" Saitama's blackened heart was lit by the shining hope illuminating from the cyborg's faith in him. What they said was indeed true; he did do all those things and he did save all those people. Maybe it was wrong of him on only look at the bad things he'd done. Saitama reached his hand out and patted Genos on the back, compassionately smiling at him as well. "Thanks Genos. That means a lot to me."

Nappa took control of the conversation again. "Through your training and monstrously hot willpower, you managed to achieve a level of power far greater than me, a Super Saiyan, and anyone else on this planet. With only a punch, you could destroy an entire planet. So don't go telling me that you're nothing."

"Yea but-"

"Your decision to let Frieza power up may have been wrong, and as bad as it might be to admit it, the lives of civilians may be in jeopardy, that much is painfully obvious." Saitama's lips pursed downward. Nappa saw this and sliced his hand through the air. "But sitting here and sulking about it isn't going to help you or any of us. If anything, every moment you waste here is a moment the people of your planet are being subjugated by Frieza, enslaved to his new tyrannical system of government and forced to live under his icy-cold iron fist. Based on how I've seen him take over, he won't go out of his way to kill civilians; he'll force them under his new system of government and most likely show a sample of his power to demonstrate the futility of resistance.

"Hopefully, people will be smart enough to lay low for now, while we figure out how to kill Frieza. But every day we don't do anything is another day where your people will be forced to work under that slimy lizard. Now are you willing to let that happen? As you just said before, are you willing to let innocent civilians pay the price for your mistakes? Or are you going to get off of this bed and work yourself so hard, Frieza's new form will seem like a cute party trick?"

Something in Nappa's words managed to change something huge in Saitama. It was like a circuit in the bald hero's brain that'd been disconnected suddenly clicked back into place, restoring the system that was Saitama's will and soul to full working order and reinvigorating him with the fiery willpower that gave him his strength. Nappa was absolutely right: it was now his responsibility to become even stronger than he was, as well as help the other heroes to attain even greater strength in the hopes of standing up to that monster Frieza. He made the choice to let Frieza reach full power, and this was the price he'd have to pay, no ifs, ands or buts.

Saitama slapped his hands onto his thighs. "Well, I guess I can't be mopin around then..." Saitama slowly jumped off of the bed and heaved a sigh. "If I do that, then Frieza wins." Saitama's pulse slammed in his neck, "And I'd rather shove crap in hell while sucking the Devil off than see that slimy lizard win again!"

Nappa's face split into a wide smile, as well as Genos's face. "Exactly!" exclaimed Nappa. Taken up in the new dedication shown by Saitama, the Saiyan General clapped his hands, and proceeded to wrap his arm around Saitama's shoulder and fiercly shake him. "That's the Saitama we're all counting on!" Saitama nervously chuckled and slowly released himself from Nappa's grip.

Saitama's resolve was now clear. Nappa and Genos were right: Saitama couldn't afford to waste time. He owed it to everyone to make up for his mistake. The pain of his stupidity was still hurting him, it was still clawing at his heart and threatening to make it explode, but if there was one thing Saitama was exceptionally good at, it was suppressing pain, and everyone out there needed Saitama's expertise in training and pushing limits now more than ever.

"Time for a training montage!" shouted Saitama.

* * *

The chamber underneath the hero association was quiet and somber, the heroes still mourning their losses in their respective ways. Suddenly, the chamber slowly came back to life when the rapid footsteps of three individuals echoed through the room. Saitama, Genos, and Nappa made their way to the center of the room. Once they positioned themselves, Saitama took one step forward, raised his hands, and shouted, "EVERYONE! CAN I HAVE YOUR ATTENTION PLEASE!" All of the people in their room lifted their heads up to acknowledge the hero. Seeing that he'd gotten their attention, Saitama continued. "I know you guys are pissed off at me! I'm pissed off at me too! But if it isn't too much trouble, I'd like for you all to gather around me for a meeting! I think you all need to hear this!"

At first, some of the heroes simply gave him icy stares and looked back to the floor, while others only started getting up at a very slow pace. But then, Sitch paced up to the center, just a few feet in front of Saitama, and boomed, "You heard him! Stop moping on the floor and listen to what he has to say!" Even though Sitch was still upset at Saitama, he still knew Saitama was a key asset in reclaiming Earth, and if Saitama felt it necessary enough to gather everyone, then it had to be important. "That's an order!"

Seeing that their superior was very serious, the rest of the heroes got up and slowly walked up to Saitama, forming a semi-circle around him, while Sonic stayed a few feet back, away from the crowd.

"Thanks Sitch," said Saitama. However, Sitch gave Saitama a cold look and clappd his fingers together. "Zip it!" barked Sitch, "I'm still angry with you!"

The bald hero let out a heavy sigh. "I know. I know..."

Sitch didn't give Saitama an inch of pity. "Well then out with it!" Sitch didn't want any dillydallying from Saitama.

"Alright..." Saitama had the floor. The room was once again silent. All of these broken, morose, and hopeless souls were looking at him, some of them infuriated with him, some of them pitying him, yet all of them were still here to listen to him. He had to try and infuse them with some sort of hope, a kickstart to get them working again. It was his responsibility.

Saitama took a deep breath in, and calmly exhaled. "Well, here goes."

"First of all, I want all of you to know that I'm sorry for what happened." The crowd didn't waver. Saitama continued. "I know my apology probably doesn't mean much to any of you, but I still want everyone to understand that this was never my intention. I've been going through an existential crisis, and I thought letting Frieza power up was the best thing to do. I didn't think about the consequences: I didn't consider how many lives I was putting at risk through my actions. I didn't think about how all of you were counting on me to defeat Frieza. I was only thinking about myself. Today, my actions weren't the actions of a hero. They were the actions of a selfish man. It's only now, through my defeat, that I'm able to truly understand that." The faces of some of the spectators began to soften.

"I don't really know any of you. I don't know what kind of people you are on the insides, what you think of your others, or what you think of yourselves, but right now, you've gotta put that aside. From what I've seen, I'm quite sure most of you take too much pride in your abilities, you probably thought you could handle most monsters by yourself, and a lot of your peers weren't nearly as strong as you. I can understand that. You're in S-class for a reason, you all persevered in your own ways, and you're able to handle the threats that most other heroes can't. But, given how battered you are, I'd say you learned that your abilities paled in the face of Frieza's might. That applies to me more than anyone else here. I've realized that I still have a lot to learn, and that's where you all come in."

"As I said, all of you are prodigies. All of you possess strength, knowledge, and abilities that've helped you reach this far."

Nappa took a step forward and interrupted Saitama. "That's right. Just as I told you before, I can teach all of you how to use your internal energy to fly and unleash ki blasts, and Saitama can teach all of us how he obtained such an explosive growth in power."

"But the only way this'll work is if we cooperate." The heroes gave each other empty stares, since most of them, like Saitama, barely knew one another nor ever had any interest in interacting with each other. Saitama let out a small groan. They weren't making this easy. "Look, this is the first God-level threat our planet has faced. We need to put our pride aside. For once, we need to stop thinking of ourselves and protect as many people as we can, like what real heroes do. Please! We have to do this!"

The eyes of the heroes softened, and they tucked their heads down to the floor, pondering everything Saitama had just said. But then, one of the heroes walked up to the center of the crowd, and that hero was Metal Bat. "Hold up! I'm not doing anything until my sister and my cat are brought here safe and sound!"

Saitama's eyes momentarily widened. "Where are they now?"

"Well, right now they should both be at our home waiting until this whole thing blows over. But now that I know this problem's gonna keep on going for weeks, maybe even months, there's no way I'm leaving them unprotected!"

Bofoi decided to interject. "Don't be foolish. With all of the foot soldiers swarming up there with their scouters, you'll be spotted in an instant. It's too dangerous, especially with that Frieza character roaming about."

Metal Bat bared his teeth at Bofoi with frightening malice, causing the aged scientist to jump back. "SHUT UP, OLD MAN!" yelled Metal Bat, "Until they're brought here safe and sound, I ain't working with anybody here! So if nobody has the decency to help me, I'll just go up there myself and hope for the best!"

"No, no..." Saitama grasped Metal Bat's shoulder and gazed at him intensely. "I can't have you going up there without any sort of plan. I can understand your concern, but if we're gonna rescue those two, it's gonna take a little bit of strategy. Does anyone have any ideas on how to go up there and find those two without being spotted?" The heroes tried to come up with a good plan for this, but nothing was coming to them. Then, it was Dr. Kuseno who received a light bulb. "I have an idea! I overheard how the female esper Tatsumaki only had a power level of 12 through the spy drone. If she could manage to travel cautiously and evade detection from any of Frieza's henchmen, she could retrieve his sister and pet without being detected by any of the scouters!" Everyone looked at Tatsumaki, who didn't seem so keen to the idea. "Does it really have to be me?" whined Tatsumaki, still not putting into perspective the gravity of Metal Bat's request.

"YEA!" shouted Metal Bat, "That's my family up there! I ain't letting anything happen to them! So stop being so whiny and get going!" Tatsumaki was almost ready to toss Metal Bat across the room, but stopped herself at the last second and sighed in exasperation. "Alright, fine. Just tell me the address and which city she's in."

"My house is in City F. We live on the 15th floor of the Paradise Suites, the largest apartment franchise in the city and the tallest building in the city too."

"Got it." Her typical green aura flickered around her, and she proceeded to float up to the top of the room. But before she could go, her sister grasped her by her wrist. "Make sure you don't do anything reckless out there," said Fubuki.

Tatsumaki gazed at her for a moment, and shockingly, instead of angrily retorting back at her younger sister, she gave her a small smile. "Don't worry about me. I can handle myself." Tatsumaki looked back at Metal Bat. "I'll try to get back here in about 3 hours. Don't wait up."

"Just go as fast as you can," replied Metal Bat. The female esper gave him a small nod before going up to the latch of the room, opening it, and exiting the shelter.

With that little skirmish out of the way, the attention was refocused on Saitama. The bald hero realized this and cleared his throat. "Alright you all. I'd like to start our training now, but I know that most of you are probably dog-tired, and I could also really use a nap right now. I know it sounds stupid, but you saw the toll the battle took on me."

"Saitama's right," interjected Sitch, "You all need to be fully rested for whatever sort of training you're going to be doing tomorrow. I don't want to see any foul remarks or uncooperative attitudes. Like Saitama said, all of humanity is counting on us." The heroes nodded.

"If that's all, then I think we're done here," finished Saitama. With that, the spectators dispersed, returning to their own activities while some of them made their way to the sleeping quarters. Saitama wiped his forehead; he was glad it managed to turn out alright. From behind him, Genos came up and stood right beside his master. "Do you believe the rest of these heroes will be able to help you become more powerful?" asked Genos.

"I wish I could say they will," replied Saitama, "But all we can do is hope, and I hope that by the end of all of this, I'll have paid for my mistakes, and everyone can rest easy again."

* * *

 _And that's it for Chapter 29! This one took me a while to make, and I honestly feel it could use a bit of tweaking, so feel free to leave any reviews saying what's lacking or missing. Anyway, be sure to stay tuned and see how the heroes are gonna start their training in Chapter 30 of the Space Emperor's Besiege!_


End file.
